UnTamed
by wisegirl502
Summary: After the untimely death of their friend Bryn Winchester, Luke, Derek, and Silena are now on their own to fight this war. But when all three of them start having dreams of Bryn being alive and working for Hannah, and as secret after secret is revealed, their lives become more complicated than ever, generally and personally.
1. And Lady Gaga is Crazy

**I'm just going to post a chapter now to get this story started and then I SERIOUSLY need to update my other stories haha enjoy!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Hell is empty. All the devils are here."  
****~William Shakespeare, **_**The Tempest**_

* * *

Chapter 1: And Lady Gaga is Crazy

**Derek**

He didn't even know how fast he could move until he was standing up, staring at Luke in shock. "Bryn's alive?"

"Yes, and she's working for Hannah. They're plotting something. I don't know what. And she has brothers. Do you have any idea what that means?!" Luke exclaimed.

"That her dad hooked up with another woman?" Silena suggested.

"No! The way she said it, it sounded like they were her full-blooded brothers which-"

"Means her mother is still alive. I never asked Bryn about her mother and since she never told me, I figured she was dead. Do you know her name?" Derek inquired.

"No, she never told me… she just told how it all happened. Listen, that's not all. She's going after someone named Hallie as well. Does that name ring a bell with either of you?"

Silena shook her head, but Derek felt the color draining out of his face. Bryn had said not to say anything about the girl he'd been dreaming about. But now she was working for Hannah? Should he still trust her?

"No idea," Derek lied, cursing inwardly at himself. It was too late to back out now though.

"I think the girl is powerful, maybe a kid of the Big Three. We need to find Chiron now and tell him what's going on!" Luke declared, already running out of the Big House to find the centaur who was most likely supervising the archery area. Derek and Silena fell into step beside him; he couldn't believe it. Not only was his best friend alive, but she was working for _Hannah_. Why would she do that? _How_ could she do it?

"Chiron!" Luke shouted, skidding to a stop. Derek and Silena halted abruptly, trying not to crash into him.

"What is it my boy?" the centaur questioned, appearing worried.

"Bryn's alive," Derek said.

"She's working for Hannah," Silena added.

"And she has brothers," Derek finished.

Chiron was taken aback. "How on earth did you three find this out?"

"I had a dream. They're on a boat. Bryn is with Hannah and a guy named Ryan London."

"I hate that jerk," Silena grumbled.

"That's impossible," Chiron replied.

"It's not! I saw it! We need to find her brothers and we need to find this girl named Hallie! Bryn is going after them for some reason," Luke remarked.

"No, if Bryn was alive, it's impossible that she would be on a boat, don't you think? You had such a difficult time just getting her onto the cruise ship that you used to sail to Milos, remember? Miss Winchester would not get on a cruise ship again. I want to warn all three of you that Hannah will try to manipulate your minds by planting false images in your heads. Be wary and don't believe it."

"Chiron, we _have_ to check it out. What if Luke is right? What if Bryn does have brothers? If she gets them to side with her, that means we'll be fighting against three children of Zeus. We're going to be screwed!" Derek argued.

"My answer is no. I cannot risk you three going on another quest and not returning. I am sorry, but that is my final answer. If she does in fact have brothers and they decide to join her, we will work something out. Out of curiosity, do you even know her brothers' names?"

The demigods fell silent. They had no clue.

Silena snapped her fingers. "Derek, we need to call Camp Jupiter."

"Why?" Luke asked.

"Bryn told Cora Valdez that she would contact them if she got back to camp. Since we don't know what in Poseidon's name she's doing right now, we have to contact her instead. I have a suspicion right now and I just want to see if she can confirm it. Come on!" Silena grabbed Derek's hand, racing off to the beach. Luke scrambled after them. Chiron tried to stop them but they were on a roll. The trio reached the water; Silena created a fine mist spray, perfect for an Iris-Message. Luke tossed a drachma in and requested for Cora Valdez at Camp Jupiter. Two seconds later, the praetor of New Rome materialized in the mist before them along with a shrimpy blonde guy who Derek immediately recognized as Antony.

"Let me do the talking," Silena whispered. The boys nodded. She then hollered, "Cora!"

The Roman whipped around. Her mouth fell open. "Silena Jackson! Derek Michaels!" Her eyes fell on Luke. "You must be Luke Jackson."

"That would be me."

"So you do exist," Antony commented.

"Shut up and go cut up some stuffed animals," Silena snapped. "Anyways, Cora, this is going to sound completely out of the blue, but what are Brady and Bradley's last name?"

"Winchester. Why? And where is Bryn?"

"She's-" Luke began, obviously about to explain everything.

"Dead," Silena finished, cutting him off. "She was killed by Hannah…"

"I'm very sorry to hear that," Cora said sincerely.

"We are too… um, where are Brady and Bradley now? We need to speak with them. It's urgent."

"Those two? Cora sent them off to be disciplined by Lupa, the She-Wolf. In my opinion they should've cleaned the entire city and camp. Much more effective but _nooooo_, they had to go to Lupa," Antony griped.

"She will put them in their place. I'm sorry but you cannot speak with them until they return. Why is it so important that you do so?" Cora replied.

"Someone is going after them and it's a person on Hannah's side. We need to get to them before they do. I have a feeling that this person will be able to convince them to join Hannah's side and the only chance we have to persuade them to stay on our side is to have the three of us talk to them because we knew their sister."

"Their sister?" Antony scrunched up his face.

"I don't know why I never made the connection before, but Bryn is… was Brady and Bradley's older sister. I mean, they have the same facial structure, the same eye shape, the same color hair, and how can we forget that they have the same freaking accent!"

"Well if you're related, that typically happens," Luke pointed out.

Silena glared at him. "No kidding, Sherlock, but then again, that's what I'm saying. I'm positive they're Bryn's siblings. Cora, I know they're being punished, but we _need_ to talk to them. Where are they?"

The praetor stayed silent, conflicting emotions flickering across her face before finally, "As Antony said, they're with Lupa, in Sonoma Valley, California. Do you have means of getting there?"

"We'll have something. Um, our counselor doesn't really know that we're doing this."

"Yes I do," Chiron stated, walking up behind them. "Hello Cora, Antony. I have a mode of transportation for them so do not worry."

"Hello Chiron," Cora greeted with a respectful head nod. "Good. Thank you for that. I will contact Lupa, and tell her to expect some Greek guests. I suggest you get going. Take care, all of you, try to stay alive, and I'm very sorry for your loss."

Thank you, and we'll try to stay alive. We will contact you again if anything new develops and if we can get to Brady and Bradley before Hannah's person does. Bye Cora!" Silena waved her hand through the mist and cut off the connection. The trio turned around to talk to Chiron.

"It has come to my attention that you may be right about Brady and Bradley Winchester after listening to your conversation. I've thought for many years that Bryn's mother had passed, but with everything going on, it may not be such a far-fetched idea that she's alive. Plus, I know you three will leave whether I let you or not. Come. I will get you your mode of transportation. It's a few friends who owe me favors." The group headed over to the Big House. The centaur made a quick phone call and patiently waited for a few minutes. A knock on the door about three minutes later surprised the demigods. Chiron walked over and answered the door. Three centaurs stood there. One wore googly eye sunglasses, one wore a hula skirt, and the other wore a muumuu.

"And people think Lady Gaga wears crazy stuff," Luke muttered. Silena stifled a laugh.

"Silena, Luke, Derek, these are my brethren," Chiron said.

"Call us Ted, Fred, and Ned, in respective order from left to right," the one that had to be Ted said.

"Nice to meet you. I'll ride with Ned," Silena decided, quickly making her way over to the one in the muumuu. She didn't want to touch the bare backs of the other two. Luke and Derek gave her jealous looks. Luke took Fred (the one in the hula skirt), and Derek took Ted.

"Centaurs can travel so fast it's almost as if they warp time. You will be in Sonoma Valley within the hour. Be careful, don't get killed. Lupa is a wolf, so she will not tolerate any weakness. Good luck you three," Chiron told them, backing away.

"Let's get this party started!" Ned hollered, rearing up. Silena held on for dear life as the centaurs started to gallop off towards California.

* * *

**And that's the first chapter! Hope you enjoyed! Please review! :)**


	2. Sinking Ships Were the Good Old Days

**So I'm sure most of you (if not all) have figured out that the quotes always deal with something that's going to happen in the chapter, BUT, just in case you haven't, well, they do. Usually it's just a key word to hint something that's happening in the chapter. It usually won't be obvious until after you read the chapter. All right, enjoy!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**I do know this. It's the things we run from that hurt us the most."  
****~Brad Sturdevant**

* * *

Chapter 2:

**Luke**

It'd been just over a week, but Bryn's death still seemed like it was yesterday. She may or may not be alive, but if she was, the Bryn that was alive wasn't the Bryn he knew. She was totally and utterly different. Luke had to accept, unwillingly, that he'd never get to see her again, and knowing she died in order to save him would haunt him forever. He would always have this guilt that no one would be able to convince him out of having.

Although, riding a centaur in a hula skirt was an interesting, yet effective, way of actually pushing the depressing thoughts out of Luke's head, even if it was because he was trying not to fall off. The world zipped past his vision, and he had no idea what state they could possibly be in. The centaurs could be taking a long route for all he knew. Luke looked over at Silena and Derek. She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the ride; he looked like he wanted to puke. Luke couldn't blame him. This wasn't the nicest of rides. Efficient? Yes. Smooth? Absolutely not.

Finally the torture ended when the centaurs skidded to a stop.

"This is where you get off. We're not a big fan of wolves," Ned said.

"No problem. Thank you for the ride," Luke replied. The three demigods waved goodbye to the centaurs.

"I feel like I'm going to puke," Derek groaned. He did look rather pale and sickly. Silena pulled out a small square of ambrosia. He took it gratefully. The trio turned around and stared at the forest in front of them.

"So who wants to walk into the forest of probable death first?" Luke inquired, trying to lighten the mood. When neither he nor Derek moved a muscle, Silena rolled her eyes and started forward, saying, "Wimps."

The two boys quickly flanked her. It still seemed strange that it was just Silena they were protecting. Luke was so used to having to watch out for his sister _and_ Bryn. He'd promised he'd take care of both of them…

"Something's following us," Silena said, interrupting Luke's thoughts. The three demigods halted, drawing their weapons: Luke and Silena their swords, and Derek his bow.

"Who's there?" Derek ordered, sounding surprisingly sure of himself. His question was answered with a low growl… or growls. From all around. Luke watched as massive wolves crept out of the forest with their teeth bared and ears straight up. He didn't need to know wolf to know these wolves meant business and if they said the wrong thing, they were going to end up as puppy chow.

"We're here to see Lupa," Luke said. "We mean no harm but we will defend ourselves if need be."

_Do you threaten us, young demigod?_ A voice demanded. Someone had said it, but not out-loud. They said it through his head.

"I'm not threatening, just advising. May I ask who spoke?"

A wolf, bigger than all the others, jumped down in front of him. Silena and Derek risked a glance behind them, but stayed facing their direction in case this new wolf ordered her pack mates to attack. If wolves could smirk, this one most definitely was and said, _I did. Give me your names._

"I'm Luke Jackson, grandson of Athena and Poseidon. This is my sister, Silena Jackson. I think her… divine heritage is obvious. And this is Derek Michaels, son of Apollo and possibly some other god apparently because he can do stuff that no one else can and is pretty awesome. You are?"

_I am Lupa. Tell me, how stupid must you be to raise arms against my pack?_

"We have wolves the size of small cars staring at us like they would like to eat us. We're going to be wary. And for the record, we had our weapons out before we knew they were them."

The alpha wolf blinked. Her eyes shifted over to Derek. He'd remained still as statue, not moving a muscle. Surely that bow was getting heavy, Luke thought.

_Derek Michaels. I've heard about you._

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" he replied, not looking at her.

_An interesting thing._

"Thank you for that clarification," he grumbled.

_You haven't figured out how to get her, have you?_

"I have actually. She's my girlfriend."

_I'm not talking about Miss Jackson._

"Then who?" Derek's voice quavered, making Luke wonder just what Lupa was talking about.

_Hallie._

"Derek?" Silena inquired.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he answered; he'd hesitated though. He was lying. Luke wanted to know why.

Lupa snorted. _You're more stubborn than Pluto himself._

"What does Pluto have to do with this? It's not even considered a planet anymore which is completely stupid," Luke said.

"Oh my gods Luke…" Silena groaned. "Pluto is the Roman name for-"

"Hades," Derek finished. "So what does Hades have to do with this?"

_You'll find out when you find the girl, among other things._

"She's his child, isn't she?"

"While I would love to know why you know this girl when you said you didn't, Derek, but we came here for another reason. Lupa, we were told you were given Bradley and Brady Winchester for some reprimanding. It is urgent that we speak with them," Silena intervened.

_You're not the only ones interested in them._

"Bryn's here," Luke stated. "She's the only one we know of that would be interested in them."

_Who is Bryn?_ Lupa actually looked confused.

"Bryn was our friend. She is… was… their older sister. We're not sure if she's dead or alive. She wants to recruit them though, and she's working for the people that are trying to bring the gods down. We can't let that happen. If it does, we'll be fighting against three children of Zeus. Luke and Silena are extremely powerful, but two children of the Big Three versus three children of the Big Three isn't going to end well. We're screwed if that happens," Derek pointed out.

_You will have more than two children of the Big Three on your side._

"Who is the third?" Luke asked.

_You'll find out soon._

"It's got to be Hallie," Derek said.

"You would know," Silena muttered under her breath. The son of Apollo gave her a guilty look.

_Come. I shall show you Brady and Bradley Winchester._ Lupa started walking off and the demigods followed.

"Uh, your minions won't turn us into puppy chow will they?" Luke queried.

"Luke!" Silena hit him on the arm.

_Only on my command. You three are not weak, which is good. Although you do have mouths on you._

"You're pretty sassy yourself, miss."

"If you get us killed with your talking, I will kill you in the Underworld and send you to Tartarus," Silena warned. Luke grinned at her but said nothing. The group followed the lead wolf with the other wolves trailing behind, keeping watch on them and everything else.

The trees that had been sparsely scattered around opened up to a small clearing, big enough for a house to be built with a ten feet of nothing but grass around the entire place. On the other side were three people: two blondes and one brunette.

It wasn't hard for Luke to figure out the two blondes were the Winchester twins. They looked just like Bryn, even from the distance he was standing at. The brunette however was unfamiliar. She was shorter than the boys, and faced away from them. One of the twins made eye contact with Luke before mouthing something to his companions. The girl placed a battle helmet on her head and started walking off, taking a glance behind her so brief that Luke didn't get a good look at her. The twins hesitated before following her.

"Brady! Bradley!" Silena hollered. The twins turned around and waved but went back to following the girl. Derek narrowed his eyes in their direction; he jogged after them. The Jacksons followed.

"Hey you two, wait up for a minute!" Derek yelled. The twins ignored him, forcing the three demigods to run faster. The Winchesters and their acquaintance disappeared behind a boulder bigger than a tank. When Luke, Silena, and Derek rounded the thing, their targets were dashing through the forest. Without thinking, the three chased after them.

* * *

**Silena**

The Winchesters were incredibly nimble on their feet and so was the other person. Derek was the closest to them because his son of Apollo powers kicked in he turned into an Olympic athlete. Silena and Luke tried to keep up as best they could, but when the twins and the girl started crisscrossing paths and disappearing behind a tree on Silena's left side and reappearing on her right side, it got confusing. Luke ended up just focusing on chasing the person closest to him, which happened to be a twin. Derek had the other twin, leaving Silena with the girl. She wondered how this was going to work out if she actually caught the mystery girl. She was gaining on her, but she hadn't necessarily thought this plan out well. Silena had never been necessarily good at hand-to-hand combat. Sword-fighting, sure. But not ninja stuff.

The mystery girl skidded to a stop, and whipped around to face Silena, who in turn slid to a stop, although not near as graceful as she would've liked. Her helmet covered most of her face, so the only part visible were her eyes; they were flashing with anger and… terror?

"Who are you?" Silena demanded.

"It does not matter who I am. Stop following us," the girl replied in a carefully controlled voice.

"It does matter. Why are you after the Winchester twins?"

"That is none of your business," the girl growled.

"What's your name?"

The girl remained quiet before: "Penn."

"Penn? Nice to meet you. I'm Silena."

"I know who you are. I am not interested in talking." Penn stalked off, but Silena, rather stupidly, grabbed her arm to stop her. Her world flipped over before being jarred back into focus. Her face was planted in the ground, her arms pinned to her back. Silena struggled violently but it was no use.

"Listen to me Silena, if you find out why I want the twins, it would be catastrophic. Stop following me and stop following them. I am truly, truly sorry for this," Penn apologized, sounding surprisingly sincere. "But it is the only way I can get you to stop following me."

Silena had no idea what Penn meant until she felt something pinch the side of neck.

A pressure point.

Her world turned black.

* * *

**Derek**

He lost the twin somewhere in the forest. It was no use trying to find him either. He was lost in the middle of an unknown forest with Luke and Silena gods know where with a bunch of wolves that would love to eat him alive with a leader who liked to give answers more confusing than the questions asked and a psycho mystery girl recruiting the Winchester twins. Derek missed the good old days when the biggest thing he had to worry about was not drowning on a cruise ship when Amphitrite and Triton got pissed that Bryn was onboard a boat in their territory.

Anger burned through his veins, and without thinking, he punched a tree. But that punch triggered something. Clattering behind him made Derek turn around. A skeleton in ragged Civil War wear was forming. Its mouth was in a permanent, gruesome smile. It turned its hollow eyes on him; he started to back up. A bow wouldn't do much against a skeleton, so Derek hastily put it away and took out his sword. But the skeleton didn't attack. It was almost as if it was awaiting orders.

From Derek.

Had he somehow raised this thing from the Underworld?

But how was that possible? He was a son of Apollo, not Hades.

"_You will have more than two children of the Big Three on your side,_" Lupa's voice resonated in his head. It wasn't possible… was it?

* * *

**Plot twist number two? Maybe? Yes? No? Let me know what you think! And does anyone smell trouble brewing between Derek and Silena? Review!**


	3. I Amuse an Alpha

**Hello my lovely readers, it's been a while. My wonderful friend on Wattpad drew some of the characters and they are now on my tumblr blog for this series! Check it out! If you would like the link for the blog, ask me in a review or message me and I'll be happy to give it to you!**

**IMPORTANT: I have made a trailer for "UnTamed" since it's taken me a while to update. It's on YouTube and on my tumblr blog as well (search for: "UnTamed Teaser Trailer") If you can't access it let me know and I'll find a way so that you can! Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**It would be too easy to say that I feel invisible. Instead, I feel painfully visible, and entirely ignored."  
****~David Levithan, **_**Every Day**_

* * *

Chapter 3: I Amuse An Alpha

**Luke**

"Come back here! I'm trying to save you dummy!" Luke hollered at the Winchester twin. He'd never met the guy, but apparently Silena and Derek had when they were on their way to rescue him. Maybe calling him a 'dummy' wasn't the smartest idea to get the twin to listen, but Luke was saying whatever came out of his mouth without really filtering it through his brain first. A bad idea to be honest.

"Bradley!" The mystery girl skidded next to him, matching his pace. The second twin appeared next to her.

"Oh come on!" Luke shouted. "I can't take all three of you on by myself! Would you stop running?!" He started to gain on the trio when he had an epiphany: what in Poseidon's name was he going to do when he actually caught them? Tie them up in the rope he didn't have?

The woods gave way to a clearing and had Luke been able to see ahead of the Winchesters and their recruiter, he could've stopped himself in time from falling over the edge of a cliff that had a three hundred foot drop. The three demigods (if that mysterious girl even was one) simply jumped off like they weren't afraid to die. But if the twins had the same powers as their sister, they could just fly off, safe and sound, leaving their pursuer to splatter into the earth below.

Luke would've liked to admit that he had some deep revelation about his life as he began to fall, but truthfully, the only thing in his mind was a word that was not appropriate to say. It started with 'F.'

He closed his eyes, wondering when he was going to become one with the ground, but instead he was yanked up and back before being dropped unceremoniously onto the ground. Opening one eye, Luke saw Lupa standing over him.

"Thank you, ma'am… She Wolf… Lupa… what exactly should I call you?" he asked. Despite the fact he knew she could rip him to shreds, it was an honest question he had.

_You're just like your father. Call me Lupa. If you weren't such a good fighter, and admittedly, amusing, you would be dead already Luke Jackson. _Lupa said.

"Remind me to make a fool of myself repeatedly in front of you then. Where are Silena and Derek?"

_Good question._

"May I have help looking for them?"

_No. You must find them on your own. But we shall follow you._

Luke grumbled about having to find his sister and best friend without any help. He wasn't a wolf; it wasn't like he could sniff their scent out. Walking into the forest, he retraced his steps back to the main house. From there, Luke went in the general direction Silena had been heading in. He called out her name.

She didn't respond, but a familiar voice did.

"Luke?!" the voice yelled from deep inside the woods.

"Derek! I'm coming!" Luke jogged towards the location where the son of Apollo's voice had come from. Derek quite literally slid into view. Besides appearing pale, he was unharmed.

"You okay?" Luke asked.

"Where's Silena? Are you okay?"

"I'm alive thanks to Lupa. Nearly became a stain in the ground. Don't ask. No, I'm trying to find her." The two boys set off at a rapid pace, splitting up, but always close enough that they could still see each other. For a few agonizing minutes, neither boy found a trace of Silena; Luke started to worry what the mystery girl had done to his sister.

"Luke! Over here!" Derek called out. Bolting over there, he found his friend cupping Silena's face. Dropping down to his knees, he placed his ear next to her heart to make sure it was beating. Relief flooded through him when he heard the steady thump.

"Silena, hey, come on, wake up," Luke said, shaking her gently. His sister groaned as her eyes fluttered open.

"What happened?" she murmured.

"We lost the twins and the girl. But who cares about that? What happened to you?" Luke said.

Silena sat up, brushing off Derek's attempt to help her. "The girl's name is Penn. She knocked me out but in a weird way. Like it didn't hurt. It just… knocked me out."

"Penn must have hit one of your pressure points," Derek suggested. "Who was she?"

"Didn't say. She just said we had to stop following her because it would be catastrophic if we caught her."

"Do you believe her?" Luke prodded.

"Actually, I do," Silena admitted. "I didn't see her face, but I saw her eyes, and she was petrified. Angry, but petrified too. Like she thought I'd recognize her or something. Penn knew who I was, too. I don't know how. But she said she did, and with the way she spoke to me, it felt like I knew her too."

"Maybe it was Bryn, just disguised," Luke said.

"That's not possible, and you know that," she consoled. "Bryn was killed. She's not coming back, no matter how much I wish she was."

"It is possible," he countered. "You know she was good at fooling people."

"Luke…" Derek began, sounding strained. "I want to believe she's alive just as much as you do, but don't you think that if she was alive, that she would've contacted us by now? That she would've let us know she's alive?"

"So what did that dream I have mean? It led us here, and someone was trying to get the Winchester twins on their side. How do you not know that wasn't Bryn with brown hair?"

"She enjoyed being blonde too much," Derek joked. "But in all seriousness, you know Bryn would've contacted us by now. If she is alive, it's not the Bryn we know."

Luke hated to admit it, but the son of Apollo was right. Bryn would've contacted them by now. They'd been the only family she had, and to her, they'd been the most important people in her life. So why the dream? That _had_ been her in his dream, and she _had_ been talking to Hannah and the guy Ryan. If Luke couldn't convince Derek and Silena that their friend was alive, then he'd have to find some sort of way to prove it to them.

"So now what?" Luke asked.

"I guess we should head back to Chiron, report what happened, and report to Cora too," Silena said.

_Cora is closer. Why do you not go first to her?_ Lupa queried.

Derek snorted. "Last time we met Cora, we uh, sort of made their Senate House collapse… partially."

_You did what?_

"Antony was trying to imprison our friend Bryn because he thought she was too dangerous and she _was _dangerous, but he was making the situation worse because he stopping her from getting to my brother which we were on a quest to rescue him at the time. To help us escape, Bryn made a pillar hit the seating area for the praetors and flew us out of there. Cora still believes we're okay, but Antony has it out for us. He wants us dead."

Lupa snarled. _No good runt. Even _I _hate him, but he is a praetor, and I must respect him. Even I must respect a leader of New Rome._

"You're welcome to turn him into puppy chow," Luke said. "Hey, what if we went to New Rome with Lupa?"

The wolf growled. _I do not leave my territory unless I find it absolutely necessary. I want you three to live, but it is not a necessary battle for me. You must fend for yourselves this time._

"You don't want to leave your territory, I understand that. It's probably extremely dangerous for you, even if you are a wolf the size of a tank and could rip anyone and anything in two or more pieces," he told her. Silena slapped him on the arm but he ignored it. "But according to my sister and Derek, Antony will have us imprisoned or killed if we go to New Rome. He's not going to believe what we saw unless we have someone to back us up, someone who is close to you. Considering we just met you, this is a lot to ask, but could you spare one of your wolves to go with us? We'll bring them right back once we're done talking to Cora and Antony, and then we'll leave. We won't contact you again until the big battle, when we will ask if you would like to fight with us."

Lupa circled the three demigods, eyeing them carefully, sizing them up. Luke gripped his sword, preparing himself just in case she attacked.

_I believe I can send some emissaries with you._ The She-Wolf turned her head to three wolves. One was solid black, the biggest of the three. The second was a red wolf, the smallest of all present, but it seemed the most… feral. The third wolf was pure white. It had gray eyes, ones that reminded Luke of his mother's. _I present to you Adolpha, Sandulf, and Ralph._

"Ralph?" Luke repeated. Of all names, the wolf's name was 'Ralph.' Compared to his previous companions, it did not seem the least bit threatening.

_You laugh at his name?_

"No ma'am. It just… doesn't sound like the others. I mean, Adolpha, Sandulf… Ralph is just very different. But I'm not laughing. No laughing from me."

_His name means 'wise wolf.' He is who I go to for strategizing. Do not underestimate him simply because his name does not sound as intimidating as the others. Adolpha's name means 'noble wolf'; she is my second in command. And lastly but far from the least, Sandulf means 'true wolf.' She may be small, but her fighting is unparalleled. They are all known by Cora and Antony. They will give validation of your story._

"Thank you Lupa," Luke replied sincerely, not believing his plan actually worked. "You have our word that we will not contact you until the big battle, when we will ask for your help in fighting against Hannah and her forces.

_You need not ask for my help in the battle, young demigod. You already have it._

"Thank y- wait, what?" Luke stared in confusion at Lupa.

_You need not ask. You already have my word I will help you._

"But we're the only Greeks to have talked to you about this, and I doubt the Romans have thanks to Ant."

_I have already discussed it with another person._

"Who all have you been in touch with before us?"

_The Winchester twins, you three, and Penn._

"It must've been Bradley and Brady," Derek rationalized.

_The twins discussed it with me, but it was not they who convinced me to join you._

"So are you saying we did?" Luke answered.

_No._

"Then who?"

Derek stood up and demanded, "Are you saying _Penn_ convinced you to fight alongside us?"

Lupa lowered her head so her eyes were level with Derek's. _Yes._

* * *

**What do you think Penn's game is? Who **_**is**_** Penn in the first place? Let me know what you think in the reviews! Be sure to check out the trailer!**


	4. I Punch a Praetor

**Did I surprise you with that chapter? I hope so :) Just wait until later chapters (muhahaha). Have fun!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**The strength of the pack is in the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is in the pack."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 4: I Punch a Praetor

**Derek**

The trip over to New Rome was relatively silent. Silena walked between Derek and Luke, but refused to speak to her boyfriend. He understood she was mad at him, but really? Not saying a single word to him? Needless to say, it irked him. Ralph, Adolpha, and Sandulf walked in front of the demigods, respectively to Luke, Silena, and Derek.

"So how are we going to talk to Cora and Antony? I don't think they'll have a _horrible_ problem with Luke, but they will with me and Silena. We didn't leave the best impression on them last time," Derek pointed out.

"At least they know not to tick you off," Luke said.

"Antony pisses me off just looking at him. He's going to trust us even less now that we don't have Bradley and Brady with us. He'll think we let them get away on purpose."

"He's that thick-headed?"

"Worse."

"Cora may be able to restrain him from doing some things but if he has as much influence as I think he does, we're in trouble. Our best bet is that the wolves help us prevent that from happening."

"That's the point of them being here. Luke, maybe you should do the talking since they don't really know you. Anything that comes out of mine or Silena's mouth is automatically deemed a lie to them."

"I understand yours, but why mine?" Silena commented.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Derek demanded.

"Nothing, not a thing."

"All right lovebirds, save the quarreling for later. Right now let's focus on the Romans, because we're here," Luke said. The three demigods came to a halt at the entrance to New Rome. Two sentries stared at them.

"Derek? Silena? Is that you?" The sentry on the right took of their helmet. A familiar blonde stood before them.

"Vanessa," Silena. "How are you?"

"I'm good. And you?"

"Um, I've been better. How are Prerana and Ana?"

"Good. What are you doing here? I mean, Cora will be welcoming, but Antony? He's like Henry the Eighth and wants to behead everyone who he doesn't like." Her eyes fell on Luke. "Who are you?"

"I'm Luke Jackson. Nice to meet you," Luke replied. Derek felt a twinge of annoyance flash through him when he saw the look of awe in Vanessa's eyes. Luke was handsome, and his mischievous eyes with his charming, sincere, albeit sometimes idiotic, personality made the girls swoon over him. Even Bryn had fallen for him, although she would've died before admitting that, which with sad irony, she did. At the thought of his best friend, grief rose up in Derek's throat, threatening to burst out. He'd been able to hide his sorrow well from others, but being alone was a completely different story. The entire quest would play over and over in his mind, from the storm Bryn created for them to escape to her mouthing "I love you" to him right before she died. With the playback of the memories came revelations. Derek began to remember certain things she said: "_I have to go save him. This is it_", "_I have to go rescue him. I have to. It has to be me_", "_I already know… Months now. The gods told me"_, and "_Derek, just remember, I love you and you're like a brother to me._" It began to dawn on him that maybe she'd known all along that she hadn't been going to make it out of the quest alive. But Luke's dream- Bryn had been _in_ it. She'd been working for Hannah. Had she been working for her all along? But if she had, why hadn't she killed them?

"Pleasure," Vanessa said, smiling at him.

"Vanessa, we shouldn't be associating with Greeks," the other sentry finally spoke. The three demigods turned to face him. He shifted uneasily on his feet.

"We're not here to cause a war, we're here to talk to Cora and Antony. Lupa sent some of her comrades with us to establish that no is not a good answer," Luke said casually. Vanessa and the other sentry did a double take as Lupa's wolves trotted into view. They'd stayed hidden, wanting to make a statement (and probably an entrance). "What's your name sentry?"

"Carlo. You've been to see Lupa?" the sentry asked.

"Yes, and she sent Adolpha, Sandulf, and Ralph," Luke introduced. "They're emissaries. We came to report to Cora and Antony what happened while we were with Lupa. They have to know."

"Tell us and we will relay it to them," Carlo said.

"No can do. They are the leaders of New Rome, we, technically speaking are the leaders of the Greeks in the upcoming war. We need to speak leaders to leaders. I apologize for any inconvenience this might cause but that's the way it has to be."

"Antony will get over it," Vanessa spoke up. "Carlo, stay here. I will take these three to our praetors."

With a disproving look, the other sentry acceded and Vanessa led the three Greeks down the tunnel to New Rome. At first hardly anyone looked at them. But soon the Romans began to recognize Derek and Silena. Some said hi, others scowled at them. It wasn't hard to figure out who supported which praetor.

"The camp is really split up," Vanessa commented quietly. "It was bad when your parents were trying to recruit our help, it's even worse now. No one thought a person could be worse than Octavian. Boy were we wrong. So," –she glanced back at Luke- "you're Silena's older brother?"

"Yeah."

"It's nice to meet you. You have very loyal people in your life. I thought your girlfriend was going to strike down Antony with a lightning bolt. To be honest, I wish she would have. Would've gotten rid of that headache for us," Vanessa grumbled.

"Girlfriend?" Luke repeated.

"Bryn. Wasn't she your girlfriend?"

"No, she and I were just friends. I guess a lot of people thought we might've been dating because we were really close, but we couldn't. Her dad and my grandfather wouldn't allow it. Don't know why. I wonder if she did; if Bryn did, she never told me."

"The way you talk about her, it's like she's not even-"

"Here? She's not. Something happened on the quest…"

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to bring this all up. If I'd known-"

"Don't worry about it." Luke turned his head. Derek happened to see his friend's face turning rather red. "So, um, is that the Senate House?"

"Yeah. It got finished being rebuilt just a couple days ago. We'll go to Cora's office, it's just down this road. She can call Antony and then he'll come and she'll have the upper hand in any argument because it's in her office," Vanessa explained. The four demigods and wolves walked into a very simple room with red curtains and light hardwood flooring. Cora sat facing her window, away from them.

"Cora?" Vanessa asked.

"Yes?"

"You have visitors."

Cora turned around. Some color left her face at the wolves, but she held her composure. "Silena, Derek," she greeted. Her eyes settled on the oldest Jackson, "and you must be Luke."

"Yes ma'am."

"Pleasure to finally meet you. My condolences are with you all for losing Bryn. She may have caused quite the stir here, but I admired her tenacity. May I ask who Lupa's emissaries are?"

"This is Adolpha, Sandulf, and Ralph. Lupa sent them with us to help persuade you and Antony, but let's be truthful, we're talking about mostly Antony here, about what happened and what's going on and what we need to do."

"I shall call him." Cora excused herself for a minute. When she returned, Antony was behind her. Must've been in his office if she'd been able to get him that quickly, Derek figured.

"You!" Antony stated angrily.

"Us," Luke responded with a raised eyebrow.

"So you're the reason Bryn destroyed our Senate House?" the praetor snarled.

"From what I've heard, you were holding her back from doing so and it ticked her off. If there's one thing I've learned about Bryn in the past year I've known her, it's that you never bet against her. But we're not here to talk about the past. We're here to talk about the present and future."

"If she hadn't been so hostile-"

"Hostile?" Silena interrupted. "Don't even _go _there Antony. You're the one who refused to listen to her. She was respectful to people who gave her the same courtesy so stop blaming her for this."

Derek stared at his girlfriend in surprise. She rarely lost her cool about things, and while she and Bryn had been friends, they'd had some nasty spats with each other. To see Silena become defensive of Bryn, well, it was just new for Derek.

Antony seemed lost for words, so Luke jumped in and said, "As you both know, the three of us went to meet Lupa in order to see Bradley and Brady."

"And? Are the twins all right?" Cora asked hurriedly.

"They appeared fine, but we didn't necessarily get to talk to them."

"Why's that?"

"Remember how we told you two about how we believed someone from Hannah's group was going after them?"

"Yes."

"Turns out we were right. They got there before us. Do you know anyone by the name of Penn?"

"No, doesn't ring a bell, but this is very disturbing news. The twins were wayward but I know they'd never join enemy forces unless the person that recruited them threatened something or someone they love dearly or they were unbelievably persuasive. The twins, while rash in their decisions they may be sometimes, are not stupid. This is worrisome. If this person could convince the twins to join them, then who knows who else they'll be able to get to," Cora stated, sitting down and rubbing her forehead.

"We should send a legion after them. I want them back here, alive or dead," Antony snarled. "I don't like the twins but they are deadly fighters. If we can't have them on our side, then the enemy can't have them on theirs."

"Do you just want to kill everyone?" Silena grunted. "I bet you wanted to kill me, Bryn, Rachel, and Derek when we came."

"I just wanted to imprison you, Rachel, and Derek. Bryn on the other hand, I wouldn't have minded if she was gone. Too unpredictable that one. She probably would've turned on all of us if she thought the enemy was going to win the war and-"

Neither Derek, Silena, Cora, nor Antony had any inclination of what was going to happen next, but Luke's fist connected with Antony's nose, causing the praetor to fly backwards. The Jackson boy was huffing, nostrils flaring, and he was eyeing his target maliciously. Derek and Silena grabbed him by the arms before he could do anymore damage. Cora stood between the Greeks and her comrade. Derek had a feeling she wanted to laugh really badly, but was managing to hold it in. Antony stood up, blood streaming out of his nose and down his face. His eyes were watering, practically bulging out of his head.

"You dare attack me? You filthy Greek!" he spat.

Luke tried to lunge at him, but Silena and Derek held him at bay, if only barely. "Say another bad word about Bryn, and I'll do a lot worse than punch you in the nose. I don't hate Romans, but I hate you."

_Enough!_ A voice rang out in Derek's head. Instinctively, he turned to face Lupa's emissaries. He wasn't sure which one of them said it though. Everyone in the room turned too, telling Derek he hadn't been the only one with the voice inside his head. _This bickering is foolish, and Antony, do not insult Miss Winchester. If you do, make sure it is not in the presence of someone who could kick your butt from here to Pluto. Mr. Jackson, if you want to forge an alliance with someone, attacking one of their leaders is not the way to go._

"Which one of you is speaking?" Derek queried. "It's kind of awkward staring at the three of you without knowing which one is doing the talking."

The black wolf, Adolpha, stepped forward. _I am speaking. Now, Cora, Antony, Lupa has sent me, Sandulf, and Ralph- the noble, the true, and the wise- to first, show that they did do as they said and that they came to see our leader in order to find the twins, and second, to bring word to you two that Lupa has decided to form an alliance with the Greeks for the upcoming war._

"She's siding with the imbeciles? These barbarians?" Antony demanded.

Sandulf snarled and said, _Are you calling our leader stupid?_

"No, of course not, I'm just questioning her judgment. She should not trust the Greeks."

Ralph came forward. _Our leader does not make new alliances lightly. If she has sided with the Greeks, then she believes this war, and fighting alongside them is vital to our survival. We are not ordering you to join our side, just highly recommending it. _

Adolpha spoke again. _It is getting dark, and my pack mates and I should be heading back. Luke, Silena, Derek, be careful, and we will see you in battle. Cora, Antony, we hope you make the right decision._

With that, the three wolves left, leaving the three Greeks and the two Romans alone. Everyone stood in silence for a few minutes Silena and Derek warily letting go of Luke, Luke forcing himself not to run his sword through Antony, Antony still trying to stop his bleeding nose, and Cora resorting to rubbing her forehead again. She was the first to speak, however, and said, "The wolves are right, and since you three have no transportation, it would only be right to offer you a place to stay here tonight. We have an empty bunker that you three can use. It is reserved for guests. I can gather pajamas and any other necessities you may need if you will accept our offer."

"You're going to let them stay here?" Antony snapped.

"Would you be quiet before you prompt Mr. Jackson to punch you again? Because I will not stop him." Turning back to the three demigods, she said, "Do you accept?"

"Yes, thank you," Silena replied.

"When you leave my office, make a right and walk until you see Bunker Thirteen. Antony and I will discuss some things and we will get back to you about joining you in the war. Good day," Cora said.

Derek, Silena, and Luke left the praetor's office. Luke was rubbing the hand he'd punched Antony with. "The kid has a hard nose," he muttered.

"I'll make a call to Chiron and tell him we'll be coming back tomorrow. I'll tell him about Lupa and all that happened. You two go find that bunker and I'll meet you there," Silena said, beginning to walk off.

"I'll go with you," Derek remarked, sidling next to her. He wanted to talk to her one-on-one without Luke there, and Luke seemed to understand that because he started to nod and walk off, but Silena stopped him and snapped, "I'm perfectly capable of doing things by myself. Besides I don't want to talk to you right now."

"And why not?" he responded, barely holding back his anger.

"You lied to me Derek! Multiple times, and the gods only know how many times before that! I don't trust you right now- couple don't lie to each other."

"What type of relationship do we have if we don't trust each other?" he pointed out.

"A crappy one, and one that makes me question if we should even be dating."Silena whirled on her boyfriend and brother and stalked off. The two boys stared at her.

"She'll come around. She's stressed, just like you and me. Don't worry about it; come on, let's go find that bunker," Luke insisted. Derek nodded but he couldn't shake the feeling that his relationship with Silena was crumbling to pieces. He had lost his best friend, he couldn't lose his girlfriend too.

"Derek, stop," Luke ordered, placing a hand on his shoulder. Derek listened, and following Luke's line of vision, looked down. Cracks were forming in the streets. All the Romans were halting in their tracks, staring at the ground beneath their feet. "What in Poseidon's name is happening?"

"I don't- I don't know," Derek admitted, but he _did_ know something. He was causing this. He didn't know how, but he was. Realizing his heart was pounding, Derek forced it to slow down to a normal rate. As it did, the cracks in the earth disappeared. The Romans slowly went back to doing, and Luke and Derek continued on to the bunker. Once they reached it, Luke went straight for the bathroom. Derek sat down in a chair. As he thought about all that he'd discovered he could do in the past few hours, between raising a skeleton and causing the ground to crack in New Rome, he muttered to himself: "Something is wrong with me."

There was no way possibly way he was a child of Hades. Because of Percy Jackson, all gods had to claim their children by the time they were thirteen. He was well past thirteen. But another idea struck him. Percy had only told the _Greek _gods that, he hadn't told the _Roman _gods that. So maybe Hades wasn't his father, but Pluto! They were technically the same person, but at the same time, their personalities were different. It was the only logical idea Derek could come up with, if you could even call this entire situation logical.

"Where's Luke?" Silena's voice inquired.

"Bathroom," Derek answered absentmindedly.

"What did Chiron say?" Luke asked, stepping into the room.

"Said he'd see us tomorrow and to be careful."

"I don't trust Antony not to try and bludgeon us in the middle of the night. Derek, Silena, why don't you two go to sleep first. I'll take first watch, wake one of you up in four or five hours," Luke offered.

"You sure you're okay with that?" Silena queried.

"Yeah, I'm not tired anyway. Go on, I'll be fine," he insisted. Derek didn't argue. Unlike his friend, he was exhausted. He went face forward onto his bed and crashed.

* * *

"_I am here, yeah," a girl said on her phone. She spoke with a very peculiar dialect, but Derek couldn't understand what made it so peculiar. A garbled voice responded to the girl. "No, but I am asking around… I am trying! It is not easy to find a girl who has practically disappeared off the face of the planet… Earth! Whatever, same thing… the high school was a dead end. I believe she has been homeschooled for a while now… no record of her at the high school _or _the middle school. I checked the elementary, and the only information I could get was when she attended up until the third grade. I did not get her address either. I am having to go search the town to see if anyone knows her… we have to save her, Bradley… because I promised someone I would, Brady!" The girl stopped and leaned up against the building. "Sorry, it is just that this is important to me. I am carrying out a promise and saving a girl from the gods know what. We are going through with this. Are you almost here?" More garbled speaking but from what Derek could determine, it sounded like a yes. "Wonderful. I will see you soon. Be careful, the town does not like outsiders, let alone ones trying to pry into a person's life that has not been seen for years. I love you two." The girl hung up and entered a quaint bar. It was obviously a good place to gossip._

"_Hello miss, what can I get ya?" An old man queried. There weren't many people in the bar. Just a few booths and three barstools were occupied._

"_Do you have Diet Dr. Pepper?" The girl took off her hat, revealing long, dark brown hair._

"_You're not from around here are ya?"_

"_What gave it away, sir? My clothes or my accent?" the girl quipped_

"_Your car," he replied with a smile. Derek looked outside, between all the trucks was a solid black Lamborghini Gallardo._

"_I have always had a soft spot for fast cars," the girl admitted. "I was wondering, sir, if you knew a girl named Hallie Argent. She should have light brown hair, brown eyes, around fifteen, sixteen years old?"_

"_No offense miss, but I'm not going to give an answer to a stranger such as yourself," the guy said, glaring at her. "I don't even know your name."_

"_My name is Penn, and would you answer me if the reason I am asking such a question is because me and my team suspect she is a victim of child abuse?"_

_The man paled. "Ch-child abuse?"_

"_Yes, and it is not a matter that we take lightly. Since you seem unable to answer me, could you possibly direct me to someone who could?"_

"_I can," a guy said, raising his hand. Penn turned around. Derek still couldn't see her face. She didn't say anything but the guy continued anyway. "My friend owns the property next to hers. Once in a while, we'll go ride horses out there. We see her sometimes, maybe three times a year at most. She smiles and waves at us but never talks. We think she's afraid of her dad. I know we are. We can't even look him in the eye."_

"_What's her address?"_

"_When you leave this bar, make a right and just keep going down the main road until it turns to dirt. Then keep going and when you reach a fork in the road, make a left. It will lead you straight to her house."_

"_Thank you, sir. Your help is greatly appreciated. What is your name?"_

"_Scott Posey."_

"_It is a pleasure to speak with you. If it is not too much trouble, may I have some form of contacting you? Just in case I have any more questions."_

"_Sure. Here, have my cell." Scott wrote down his number and handed it to Penn. "Hope she's all right. Tell her I say hi. We used to hang out in kindergarten. You don't forget a girl who made silver raise from the ground," he laughed._

_Penn waved goodbye, thanked him again, and left. She got in her car and headed in the direction Scott had instructed her to. Movement in the skies made Derek look up. Two pegasi were flying in circles. Upon seeing the Lamborghini, they shot down to the ground. Derek recognized the riders as Bradley and Brady._

"_Well?" one of them asked._

"_We head down this road and make a left when there is a fork. But I have another job for you. Find Scott Posey's address. Hallie was on our list and so was he. Find him."_

"_On it, sis," the other twin said, winking. They flew back up into the air and Penn continued to her destination._

* * *

Derek bolted into sitting position. _Promise_? _Sis_? _List_?

"You all right?" Luke inquired quietly, causing Derek to jump. He calmed down when he realized who it was. Leaning back against the headboard of his bed, he replied, "Yeah, weird dream."

"Dream or vision?"

"I think it was a vision. The twins were in it. So was Penn. I didn't see her face, but one of the twins… they referred to her as 'sis.' So either Zeus fell off the wagon again or the twins aren't Bryn's brothers like we thought they were."

"Or maybe it was Bryn and she's just hiding from us for some reason?"

"She wouldn't do that. I know her."

"So did I."

"Not for over ten years." Derek sighed. "I'm not meaning to be harsh Luke, it's just that I know Bryn wouldn't hide from us. We were family to her. I'll take the next watch. You get some sleep."

"It's not falling asleep that's the problem. It's staying asleep that is," Luke mumbled.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't have any trouble actually falling asleep, it's staying asleep that I have problems with now. And it's the opposite with Silena. It started ever since Bryn… died."

"I'm sorry, Luke. Are dreams waking you up or…?"

"Yeah. I'd rather not talk about it though. I'm going to get some sleep. See you later. If you want, I don't think Antony is going to bludgeon us to death so you get some more sleep too," Luke said.

"I'm fine. I'm not tired anymore right now. If I do, then I will," Derek responded. It was true, he wasn't tired; in fact, he was anything but. After his dream, he had more questions than answers. Penn was going after Hallie because she had promised someone she would save her. But who had she promised? And why was she going after Scott? What list was he on? And why in Apollo's name did the twins call Penn 'sis'? Derek had to find out. He'd already told Luke his suspicions, but no matter how defeated the grandson of Poseidon seemed when Derek told him it wasn't Bryn, he still had a strong suspicion Luke was only acting. He couldn't talk to someone who had a one track mind about that sort of thing. Then there was Silena, who would be more logical about it, but she didn't want to speak with him, let alone discuss things with him, so that left just Derek himself to find out. If Bryn was still here, she'd go with him. He would be able to count on her, but she wasn't. Derek was going to have to do this alone.

* * *

**Luke**

_A black Lamborghini stopped alongside a dirt road, with a blonde girl stepping out of it. A few seconds later, two pegasi landed next to it. Bradley and Brady Winchester hopped off. If they were Bryn's brothers, it meant that they were thirteen going on fourteen. Puberty had hit them early though. They did not look thirteen in the slightest. In fact, they could've passed off as twenty year olds if they tried hard enough._

"_Did you find Scott?" the girl asked. Luke's heart physically ached as he heard the familiar British voice._

"_We did, but he wasn't home, so we'll head over there later," a twin said._

"_So what's the plan?" the other twin questioned, leaning against the hood of the car. Bryn swatted him off of it._

"_You two are going to pretend to be local officials. Upon recent survey, it was found that the fence encasing his sheep has been broken and it needs to be repaired for the sheep's safety and other animals on the bordering property. If he argues, convince him to come with you and go to the far corner of the pasture. It'll be broken, I promise you."_

"_How'd you manage to do that? We've been watching your car almost the entire time."_

"_I called in a favor from father," Bryn said, opening the hood of the car. She pulled out a box and handed it to a twin. "Suit up. You're the distraction. Distract him for as long as you can. Warn me when he's coming back so I can get out."_

"_Aye, aye, captain. So, while Brady gets to look ridiculous in a suit, do I get to go help you rescue a damsel in distress?" Bradley queried._

"_First off, if she's as powerful as I think she is, she could give all of us a run for our money. Second, you're suiting up with Brady. I'm going in alone."_

"_You can't go in there alone!" Brady retorted._

"_I'm older, wiser, and faster than you two. I love you both, but it's true. Now go suit up. We have to hurry. We're not the only ones that are after her."_

"_Derek?" Bradley stated._

"_Yes," Bryn replied emotionlessly. "Now seriously, get going. The sun is starting to set. We don't have much time."_

_The twins nodded and began changing clothes. Bryn stood at the back of the car, facing away from them. She appeared haggard, as if she hadn't gotten much sleep._

"_Bryn, are you ever going to tell us the truth about why you're doing all this?" Brady prodded resting his head on her shoulder._

"_I've told you already."_

"_Not everything," Bradley added, resting his head on her other shoulder._

"_Some things are better left unsaid. Come on. Bradley, you're older, so you get to drive first. I don't care if you're fourteen, you don't look it. Brady, you can drive it out of the driveway back here to this spot. After that, I'm driving again. I swear, if you mess up this car-"_

"_We won't!" Brady promised._

"_Promise!" Bradley added._

_She smiled. "I'll fly behind you. Now go, and _slowly_!" The twins nodded, hopping into the super car. As Bryn said, she flew behind the car, but far enough that she didn't get dust into her eyes. The car pulled up to a two story, log cabin. There was a window to the basement and a few feet over was a cellar door, most likely for tornadoes._

"_I would not want to live in Oklahoma," Bradley remarked, getting out of the car._

"_Why's that?" Brady queried._

"_Too many tornadoes."_

"_Dude, we can control those. It's essentially wind isn't it?"_

"_I… oh yeah."_

"_And you think you're the smart one." The two brothers started hitting each other until Bryn sent a lightning strike at the two of them, effectively stopping them. She also gave them a pretty intimidating warning glare. Brady knocked on the door, and a man double their height and triple their size answered._

"_What do you want?" he demanded. The boys began to explain, becoming more comfortable in their roles. Somehow, they managed to convince the man to follow them. The moment the owner's back was turned, Bryn dashed to the house, slipping inside. Luke followed. She headed downstairs and began checking rooms. One was a boiler room, another a bathroom. The last room was at the end of the hall, and music could be heard playing softly. Bryn carefully opened the door and peeked in._

"_Are you Hallie Argent?" she asked softly. The girl jumped about a foot in the air and instantly got in a fighting position._

"_Who the hell are you?" Hallie barked, sounding stronger than she looked. Her brown hair was pulled into a bun, she wore sweatpants and a hoodie._

"_My name is Bryn Winchester. I don't have much time to explain things. My brothers will be able to keep your father at bay for only so long," Bryn explained, holding her hands up as a peace gesture._

"_How do you know who I am?"_

"_This may sound awfully strange, but a… an acquaintance of mine dreamt about you. He said he felt like you were in trouble, in pain. He wanted to come rescue you."_

"_So why isn't he here?"_

"_It's a long story that I don't have time to explain to you right now."_

"_I'm a freak Miss Winchester. I don't know why the hell you'd want anything to do with me."_

"_Please, call me Bryn. And why do you think you're a freak?"_

"_I can do things that… that other people can't do. And it's not cool, flashy things either. It's freaking scary things."_

"_I'd like to see," Bryn said genuinely._

_Hallie looked at her dubiously. "You'll just run off like the others."_

"_Where I come from, it takes a lot to surprise me. In fact, I think you and I might have more in common than you realize. Please, I'd love to see what you can do."_

_Hallie raised her eyebrows but conceded. Closing her eyes, she held her hands out towards the floor. Luke blinked, and in that split-second he wasn't paying attention, a skeleton formed in front of Bryn. Instinctively, Luke tried to throw himself in front of his friend, but he remained in place. He had to remind himself that this was a dream. He couldn't control anything._

"_You're not running," Hallie observed._

_Bryn smiled, although she kept careful watch on the skeleton. "Because I was right. This is going to sound like another strange statement, but do you believe in gods? Greek gods in specific?"_

"_No. If any god did exist, they would've heard my prayers to get out of this hellhole. Why? Don't tell me you believe in that stuff."_

"_I do, actually. And the Greek gods, believe it or not, do exist. You've prayed to them, and they haven't heard you."_

"_How do you know?"_

"_Because your dad would've gotten you out of here sooner. He knows what town you're in, but some magic, strong magic, is blocking him from finding exactly where you are."_

"_So how did you find me?"_

"_Through old-fashioned-detective work: asking."_

"_You said you and I are more alike than I think. How so?" Bryn held out her hand. Lightning sparked off her fingers. Hallie jumped back in surprise and breathed, "What are you?"_

"_I'm a demigod, half human, half god. The same as you. My father is Zeus, grandmother is Aphrodite, great granddaughter of Hecate, and great-great granddaughter of Apollo. I know, it's a mouthful. And you, you're a daughter of Hades."_

"_God of the Underworld and riches," Hallie said._

"_Precisely. That man you've been living with? That isn't your real father. The gods have issues, but even though they may not show it all the time, they actually do care for their kids. It's just the Fates usually don't allow them to get too involved in our lives and- Hallie, what's that?" Bryn's eyes narrowed in on the girl's wrists._

"_Nothing," Hallie responded, tugging her sleeves down even though they already were._

"_Hallie, let me see your wrist," Bryn ordered firmly yet gently. Reluctantly, the daughter of Hades obeyed. Bryn pulled up the sleeves and gasped. Bruises and welts went up the entirety of Hallie's arms. Luke was disgusted, and he figured it was probably the same on the other arm._

"_Did… did he do this to you? The man keeping you here?" Bryn demanded. Hallie nodded. Bryn's eyes flared with anger as she placed her hand about an inch above Hallie's arm and started whispering healing incantations. The welts disappeared, the bruises faded._

"_How on earth…?" Hallie began._

"_Do you want out of here?" Bryn asked._

"_What?"_

"_Do you want to get away from him? I have a place where you can stay. I will teach you how to fight, because all those myths and legends you read about in Greek mythology, they're real. The monsters will come after you, but I can help you."_

"_I'll go. How much time do I have to pack?"_

_Bryn blanched. "You have all night. I have to come back tomorrow. Your… keeper is coming back. Be ready by ten tomorrow morning. Get in your storm cellar and do _not_ let your keeper come in with you. One of my brothers will come get you."_

"_What will you be doing?"_

"_Distracting your keeper. I have a feeling he's not… human."_

"_Then what is he?!"_

"_I'll find out. I have to go, okay? Be strong, and if he hurts you anymore, I'll heal your wounds when I see you tomorrow okay?"_

"_All right… but why do I have to go in the storm cellar?"_

_Bryn grinned as she opened up the window leading outside. "Because I'm a pissed off daughter of Zeus. Lightning isn't the only thing I can control. I'll see you tomorrow Hallie. I'll get you out of here. I promise." With that said, Bryn literally flew out the window and behind the Lamborghini just as Brady and Bradley slunk to the car._

"_God he's scary," Brady muttered._

"_I can't believe he didn't gut us," Bradley added._

"_Will you hurry up you two?" Bryn hissed. The twins started up the engine._

* * *

"Luke, oh my gods, wake up!" Silena shook her brother forcefully. He groaned as he opened his eyes.

"What happened?" he murmured, still out of it.

"Derek's gone! I heard him leave this morning and he hasn't returned. His backpacks gone too!"

By now, he was wide awake. "Damn it. Silena, grab your backpack. We have to go talk to Cora. I think I know where he's going."

"Where?"

"Oklahoma. To get Hallie."

* * *

**Uh oh, Derek left by himself without telling anyone! And what's with Luke's dream about Bryn? Or Derek's dream about Penn? Guess you have to read to find out- review please! :)**


	5. I'm Blown Away

**Enjoy the chapter guys!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**In the eye of the tornado, there's no more high and low, no floor and sky."  
****~Francis Alys**

* * *

Chapter 5: I'm Blown Away

**Derek**

He'd left at three in the morning. It'd already been turning daylight. Silena had stirred, but if she was awake, she didn't stop him. Derek stopped at a motel and crashed for a six hour nap after driving for twelve hours. After that, he continued the rest of the eleven hour journey on the motorcycle he'd talked a Roman into giving him. Apparently saying that it was a life or death matter for another demigod was pretty important to them.

He pulled into the town he dreamed that Penn was in. He had seen the name of the bar in the dream, and somehow, miraculously, remembered it; before leaving, he'd looked up the address. Sure enough, when he arrived at the bar and walked in, the bartender that had talked to Penn was cleaning the counter. He looked up and smiled at Derek.

"Hey there, son. What can I do-"

The man was interrupted by the door to the bar being flung open. Derek whirled around and narrowly avoided a slap by a very pissed off Silena.

"What in Hades' name were you thinking?" she hissed, going in for another slap. Her brother grabbed her wrists.

"Whoa there tiger. I don't think hitting him is going to encourage him to reply to you," Luke admonished. He gave Derek an apologetic look.

"How did you guys find me?" Derek asked, shuffling on his feet. He didn't like the attention they were receiving from the customers. There were only two or three, but still, they didn't need all the attention.

"Cora might've forced Antony to track you and then she gave us two-" Luke glanced around at the other patrons. They were talking amongst themselves but it was obvious they were still eavesdropping. The Jackson boy lowered his voice accordingly. "-pegasi to get us here. We caught up with you in Houck but we lost you when the dust storm rolled in. Talked to our rides and they told us they'd wake us up when they saw you moving again. And then we continued following you from there. Listen, I'd tried to stop her from barging but-"

"Oh shut up," Silena snapped. She faced Derek again. "Now are you going to tell us what you were thinking? What in the world possessed you to completely leave us behind? The girl you've been-"

"Enough," Derek interrupted. Adding in a whisper, "It'll freak these people out if they hear what I've been doing. What we all have. We can talk later."

His girlfriend's nostrils flared but she stayed silent, telling him she was going to hold back on yelling at him for now. The three demigods walked to the bar. Derek began with, "Hello, sir."

"Everything okay between you three?" the man queried kindly.

"Just a couple's argument," Luke replied with a charming smile. "Uh, would you mind if we ask you a couple questions?"

"Are you part of that girl's team?" the man answered.

Luke started to say "What girl" but Derek intervened and said, "You mean Penn, right?"

"That's her."

"You wouldn't happen to know where she is would you? Our phones were stolen. Looked away for one minute and someone swiped them off our table."

"She didn't tell you beforehand? She went to go see Hallie Argent. I don't know why. No one's seen the girl in years. Makes you wonder but you know, can't do anything when you have no proof."

"Penn is a… private girl. She likes to work alone. Bosses don't like it but she's good at what she does so, they don't really do anything. Do you know where Miss Argent lives?"

"Well, according to a patron of mine, if you make a right and just follow the road until the fork in the road, make a left and it'll take you straight to her house."

"Thank you so much sir." The trio left the bar and went outside. "So what next?"

"We need to find Hallie obviously. Wasn't that the whole point of your trip here?" Silena pointed out, her face emotionless.

"That and to try and figure out what Penn is up to," Derek said. The trio began to walk down the sidewalk while they discussed what their next plan of action was.

"Ah crap," Luke muttered. "I think I might've dropped my wallet in the bar. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up with you."

* * *

**Luke**

Before either Derek or Silena could respond, Luke was already running down the sidewalk back to the bar. He had a hunch, but he wanted to see if he was correct. Opening the door, the old man at the bar smiled. "Back again?"

"Sorry sir, I just forgot to ask a question." Luke pulled out his phone and brought up a picture. "This will sound strange considering I know her and everything but did Penn look like this?"

The man squinted at the picture before replying, "That's definitely her, with the exception of the hair. She was brunette when she came in two days ago. Son, you and your friends don't really work for her, do you?"

Luke gave him a sheepish look. "No, but we're trying to find her."

"She in trouble or is she causing trouble?"

"To be honest, we don't know what she's doing, and we need to find out. Thank you for your time sir," Luke said before heading out. He made sure he wasn't in front of the bar anymore before leaning against the wall and looking at the picture he'd shown the bartender. Bryn smiled up at him.

"What are you doing Bryn?" Luke mumbled to himself.

"You okay?" Silena's voice asked gently. His head snapped up instantly. He hadn't even heard her come up.

"Yeah, yeah, fine. Where's Derek?" he inquired, shoving his phone back into his pocket.

"Talking to Chiron. I came to find you. You didn't forget your wallet, did you?"

"What gave it away?"

"Your scrunched up face and the fact that I saw your wallet in your pocket as you left."

Luke sighed. "If I tell you, you won't believe me."

"Tell me. I won't criticize you."

"I had a hunch and showed a picture of Bryn to the bartender. He said, with the exception of the hair when she went in two days ago." Silena stayed silent for a few seconds before saying, "So, if Bryn really is alive, and I'm not saying she is, then why hasn't she spoken to us? What's she doing? What's she planning?"

"I don't know, but I had a second dream about her. The other day, before you woke me up. She was talking to Hallie, saying she was going to rescue her the next day, but the way Bryn said, it sounded like her distraction was going to be big, big enough that not just Hallie and her kidnapper or whatever he is would see it."

"The town. She must've meant them."

"Or bigger."

"Bigger?!"

"You know Bryn, it's go big or go home."

"I… yeah, you have a point. Let's go tell Derek about it. He'll want to know, if only because it's about Hallie."

"Still mad at him for that?" Luke queried, walking with Silena.

"Should I not be?"

"That's up to you, but just… cut him some slack. He must've kept it from you, from us, for a reason. Derek doesn't hide things from us often. So maybe he just wanted to figure it out or something before he told us."

"He straight up lied to us about knowing who Hallie was."

"Must've had a good reason though."

"So you're defending him?"

"No, I'm just trying to rationalize why he would do it."

"Since when do you try to rationalize things?"

"Since when do you not?" Silena glared at her brother but said nothing else. When they rounded the corner, a bunch of people were swarming around someone on the ground. Seeing the familiar backpack through the cracks of the crowd, Luke darted over. He pushed his way to the front of the crowd so he could kneel next to his friend who was completely unconscious.

* * *

**Derek**

_The last thing Derek remembered before being sucked in by his vision was a killer headache after he finished talking to Chiron. He'd barely taken two steps when he lurched forward, going head-first into the pavement. He knew he was going to have a nasty bruise when he woke up._

"_Clothes- check. Hairbrush- check. Toothbrush and toothpaste- check. Makeup- check," A girl listed off. Derek turned around. Hallie was packing a duffel bag so full the seams looked like they were about to bust. She threw the bag over her shoulder and slipped out of her room into another, the storm cellar. She dead bolted the door and sat in the corner, murmuring for Bryn to hurry up._

_The scenery changed, and Derek was now on a dirt road. Three people crowded around the hood of a black Lamborghini. He recognized them immediately: Bryn, Bradley, and Brady._

"_Are you sure you'll be able to control this?" a twin asked._

"_No, but I'll manage. We've already put this off for a day. We can't wait any longer and neither can she. All right, Bradley, you're going to get Hallie out of there and remember: skirt around my distraction. I'll try to prevent it from picking you up. Brady, you're watching out for me in case that lumberjack of a Cyclops comes after me while I'm making the distraction. Bradley, the moment you have her at the car, tell us. That way I can stop it. Just hurry, okay? I don't know how long I'll be able to hold it."_

"_Hey Adler," Bradley greeted as the eagle landed on his shoulder. Derek felt his face pull back into an annoyed expression at the feathery companion. He hated that eagle…_

_The bird leaned in towards Bradley, obviously saying something. His face turned grim as he informed, "Company has arrived in town today."_

"_What company?" Brady questioned, swinging his sword leisurely._

_The former twin glanced at Bryn briefly. "Derek, Luke, and Silena."_

_Bryn froze. "They're here?"_

"_Just arrived today and they're at the bar you went to. Probably to enquire about you."_

_The daughter of Zeus swore colorfully in Greek. "They got here faster than I thought. Now we really can't wait because we still have to get Scott before they find out we're after him. How are they even figuring out where I am?!"_

"_I don't know, but come on, let's get going!" Brady urged. The twins sprinted ahead as Bryn spread out her feet, closed her eyes, and held out her hands. Storms clouds, ominously dark, gathered over her. A few pieces of hail dropped down, about the size of a pea. They all avoided hitting Bryn. Derek sensed movement above him and glanced up. His stomach dropped. He'd never seen a tornado in real life, but had seen enough pictures and watched enough television to know that the clouds circling above his head were called a funnel cloud, and knowing Bryn, she was going to turn that funnel cloud into a tornado. Even though the force of nature hadn't touched ground yet, Derek knew it was going to be huge. His friend wanted to make a statement. To whom, he didn't know._

"_Go Bradley, go!" Brady hollered. The twin dashed towards the house. Derek's vision followed him. He slid to a stop and banged on the cellar doors. They opened, revealing a very frightened Hallie._

"_Hello there," Bradley shouted politely. "Here, give me your bag." She handed it to him and crawled out, her eyes wide with shock._

"_How is she- how is that possible?" she demanded, pointing at something behind Bradley. He and Derek turned around. The tornado had finally touched down and it was following an armed Bryn down the road. Her sword shone even in the darkness of the storm. Brady skidded next to his brother._

"_Get Hallie out of here. Her daddy just woke up and he's pissed. Go!" Brady ordered. "I'll watch out for Bryn!"_

_Bradley dragged Hallie out of the way as his sister approached. The color had drained out of Bryn's face. The storm was taking it out of her. She walked into the house, stopping dead center and kneeling with the tip of her sword touching the floor. She closed her eyes. Brady stood guard, his eyes flitting everywhere, watching for the slightest hint of an attack. One soon came. The Cyclops that had imprisoned Hallie lumbered through the hallway, fortunately in the pathway that Brady was already in. The twin lunged at the monster, pushing him back away from Bryn who remained silent and still. What was she doing? Brady proceeded to push the monster outside. Just as the Cyclops swung at his head, the twin threw himself on the ground and covered his head. The scene changed back to Bryn, who lifted up her sword and stabbed it into the ground. Lightning from all directions struck the dead center of the house, effectively ripping it apart. By now, the tornado was there as well, sucking up the debris in its swirling vortex. A massive piece of wood hit the Cyclops, knocking him into oblivion. When the lightning disappeared, Bryn still knelt where the center of the house used to be. She swayed in her spot though. Brady rushed over to her, helping her stand. The tornado was going back up into the clouds, causing the debris to fall haphazardly. The two Winchesters walked slowly back to the Lamborghini where Hallie and Bradley were waiting. The new demigod was holding onto the twin's arm, staring at her old home._

"_Bradley, Bryn can't drive. We can't get her out of here and after that show she just pulled, our guests are going to be on our tails. We have to drive. Hallie and Bryn can take the Pegasi. You drive though; you're better at it."_

"_The Pegasi won't let a daughter of Hades ride them."_

"_Well then Hallie can ride with you in the Lambo and Bryn and I can take the Pegasi. We still need to get Scott though."_

"_Deal." The twins helped their sister up onto one of the flying horses before Brady got on the other. Bradley threw Hallie's duffel bag in the car and got into the driver's seat. She hesitantly got into the passenger's side. The group took off and Derek woke up._

"Derek!" Silena shouted when he woke. He groggily shook his head to clear his thoughts. He realized that he was slumped against a wall with a horde of people, including his two friends, surrounding him.

"What happened?" Derek groaned, rubbing his head.

"You just fell over, son," a man explained. "Saw it all happen. This ever happen before?"

"No, but I haven't eaten in twenty-four hours," the son of Apollo lied, "So I think I'm just hungry."

"Well then let's get you somewhere to eat then," Luke offered, lifting his friend up. The two Jackson siblings led Derek away from the crowd. Once away from eavesdroppers, Luke asked, "Seriously, what in Hades' name happened back there?"

"A vision. Bryn… she's rescuing Hallie. But she's late doing it. She's going to-" Derek was interrupted by a scream. The three demigods turned around. In all the worry about Derek, no one had noticed the tornado touch down a few miles outside of town.

"Holy Poseidon," Luke muttered. "Is this what Bryn was going to do?"

"Yeah, which means she's still here."

"Which means we can still reach her."

"We won't get there in time," Silena pointed out.

"We have to try. They had a car. A black Lamborghini. It shouldn't be too hard to find. You guys have Pegasi right? Just follow me on my motorcycle but be on watch. Bryn and Brady are on them too. Follow them if you can. Come on!"

Derek didn't wait for their responses. He threw on his helmet and started up his motorcycle.

* * *

**What do you think Bryn is doing? Is it even Bryn though? What's her game? And what do you think is going to happen between Derek and Silena? BE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE PREVIEW FOR "UNTOUCHABLE" ON MY BLOG ( .com). ****Let me know in a review :)**


	6. I Get Caught

**Did you like the last chapter? I hope so! I've been wanting to write that chapter for so long!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Lies and secrets, Tessa, they are like a cancer in the soul. They eat away what is good and leave only destruction behind."  
**_**~Clockwork Prince**_

* * *

Chapter 6: I Get Caught

When the trio arrived at the place where Hallie's place was supposed to be, nothing remained but debris. Police cars followed behind them, but the demigods soon figured out the cops just wanted to make sure no one had been in the house. Naturally, they found no trace of either Hallie or her "father". Derek, Luke, and Silena begrudgingly headed back to the hotel where the Jackson twins had booked a night's stay.

"We need to find that Scott kid. Any ideas on where he would be?" Luke remarked, opening the door to their room.

"No, but I'm sure his name is in the phone book. I mean, how many people have the last name Posey?" Derek pointed out.

"You know his name too? When were you going to tell us this?" Silena said.

"When it became of importance. I had other things on my mind. I forgot about him," he defended.

"You make the call then since you seem to know so much about him." She turned away and went to the bathroom. Derek and Luke shared a look. Apparently Luke didn't know what to make of his sister's behavior either. Instead, the son of Apollo grabbed the phone book and scanned for the last name "Posey". Within a few minutes, he found the only people in the town with that specific last name and dialed the number. A woman picked up two rings later and said, "Hello?"

"Hello, ma'am, my name is Derek Michaels. I was wondering if I could speak to Scott Posey?"

"He's not here. He went off with some people. Recruiters. Sorry."

"Recruiters?!"

"Yes, now, I'm very sorry, but I have some errands to run. If you have any more questions, you'll have to call another time. Bye!"

The woman hung up, leaving Derek angry and confused. What recruiters? Why were he and his friends always one step behind? What was happening? Why did Bryn want Hallie and Scott so badly?

"We should head back to camp in the morning," Luke suggested. "I don't think there's anything here anymore. If you want to know, I think we should focus on something more vital."

"What would that be?" Silena queried, sitting down on the couch.

"Finding Bryn's mom. Bryn told me on our first quest that her mom had died, according to the Cyclops that kidnapped her. Obviously that isn't true since Bradley and Brady exist. I don't know if Mrs. Winchester knows that Bryn is alive, but… if Bryn _is_ alive, it's not the one we know… she wouldn't hide from us. So if we find Mrs. Winchester and she asks about her daughter, we'll just say she died, okay? No need to cause her more pain. She probably already thinks her daughter is dead."

"Where do we start searching?"

"White pages, I guess."

"There has to be well over a hundred people with the last name 'Winchester' in London though. I doubt she moved from there despite what happened," Derek commented. "And we can't call every Winchester there is. That'd take forever, be expensive, and get us nowhere any time soon."

"Do we know her first name?" Silena questioned.

"No. Bryn never said," Luke answered.

"You don't think Chiron would know, do you?"

"Most likely not. Zeus does, but I doubt he'd tell us. He didn't want Bryn knowing about her mother or else he would've told her, therefore he probably doesn't want Mrs. Winchester to know about Bryn."

"Even if she's not here?"

"Even then. I guess we'll have to do good, old-fashioned detective work."

"If I have any psychic visions telling me who she is, I'll let you know," Derek joked lightly. The trio decided to get some rest. After all, they had a long journey back to New York tomorrow.

* * *

**Two days later…**

Once back at Camp Half-Blood, and after explaining to Chiron and their parents what happened, Derek retreated to his cabin. He still hadn't told Silena and Luke about his newly discovered powers. He didn't know what to make of the find yet. He wanted to learn how to control it first. There was only one person he could go to about this: Olive Poplar.

The only daughter of Hades. She was in her mid-twenties. Hades had met a woman pretty soon after the Second Titan War. Olive was pleasant but reclusive. She didn't talk much to others though.

Making sure no one saw him going to talk to her, Derek knocked on the door of the Hades cabin, hoping she was there. Olive worked but lived at Camp Half-Blood. Hopefully she was home already. Luck was on his side when she opened the door. She smiled at him, but appeared confused.

"Hey, Derek, what's up?"

"This is going to sound really strange but can I talk to you? Privately?" he asked quickly.

Olive shrugged and moved aside. He stepped inside hastily. She shut the door and said, "So?"

"I need to show you something." Derek extended his hand and closed his eyes. He concentrated on raising a skeleton from the ground. A few seconds later, from the auditory gasp he received, he figured it'd worked. Sure enough, upon opening his eyes, a skeleton dressed in revolutionary war attire stood at attention, waiting for his orders. Derek turned to Olive and said, "I think I might be a child of Hades."

She raised her eyebrows and went, "You _think_? How in Hades' name did you not know this sooner?!"

"I don't know! I never really felt the urge to raise an army from the dead. I mean, I've always been good figuring out where to go underground but I thought it was just Apollo giving me wickedly good intuition. Then a while back, I was fighting some Cyclops and I got angry. They'd hurt my friends. I'd felt this tug in my gut and when I released the arrow I was firing at them, the feeling disappeared and it was just this huge gaping hole in the beach. I never mentioned to anyone that it was _me_ who did that because I didn't know what was happening. And then when I was out in California a few days ago, I got angry and long story short, I somehow raised a skeleton from the earth and I can't have that happen every time I get angry," Derek rambled. He took a deep breath afterwards.

"I don't know what caused that hole but I can teach you how to control the anger causing skeletons to rise. I'm not that good at raising the dead. My ability is the jewels and riches of the earth but I can muster a skeleton or two once in a while. You'll have to practice on your own too, but I can give you some guidelines."

"I'll take anything you can give me."

"Then let's get started."

* * *

**Silena**

The ride back to Camp Half-Blood had been awkward for Silena. Derek and Luke chatted most of the way (mostly to help them stay up while they drove). She was the odd one out. Her anger at Derek hadn't subsided, but she had her reasons. Sure the lying had ticked her off, sure the secrecy about Hallie had hurt because it made Silena feel like Derek didn't trust her. But neither of those things were the ultimate reason why she was upset with him. For some reason, she felt like Bryn had known she was going to be the one not to come back from the quest. Bryn had kept it a secret to protect her friends for getting hurt by the truth. What if Derek was doing the same thing? Silena held her tongue though, kept silent, lest her boyfriend and brother begin to think she'd lost her marbles. Instead, she acted as if the only thing that bothered her was the lying.

It'd been five days since she got back from Oklahoma. In that time period, she had hardly spoken to her boyfriend. Luke was even wary around her but he'd changed anyway, so it didn't bother her _too_ much, knowing that it wasn't just her that was affecting the change in her brother's personality.

Speaking of her brother, Silena saw Luke heading into the forest. She decided to catch up with him.

"Hey," she greeted, falling into step beside him.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Mind if I join you in your walk?"

"Not at all, but I'm looking for Derek, and considering you two haven't exactly been on the best of terms lately, I don't know if you want to see him," Luke pointed out.

"I don't care. I'm not the one searching for him. But why are you going into the forest to look for him?"

"Someone said they'd seen him enter it a little while ago. I don't know what he's doing in here either, but I'm still checking."

"What do you need to ask him?"

"I want to see if there were ever any names Bryn mentioned that he didn't know who they were. Maybe she said her mother's name and none of us realized it."

"That makes sense. And at least it's a place to start."

"It's all I could think of."

"Your Athena is showing," Silena joked.

"Oh shut it," Luke laughed, shoving his sister lightly.

"I think I saw movement over there. Maybe it's Derek," she said, changing the subject. The siblings made a left toward an area surrounded by rocks. Silena jumped over a fallen tree and stopped dead in her tracks. Derek was in the center of the rocky enclosure, his hand outstretched. From the ground, a skeleton was rising. It stood fully formed within two more seconds. The face of bone turned its hollow eyes on Silena, and she could've sworn it was smiling at her. Instinctively, she took a step back. At that moment, Derek whirled around. His mouth opened but nothing came out.

"Don't say anything," she said. "I'm done with the secrecy and the lies Derek. It's over."

Silena turned on her heels and stormed off.

* * *

**Luke**

With a wave of his hand, Derek made the skeleton disappear back into the earth. However, he still stared after Silena. Luke knew his friend wasn't going to handle the breakup well. He walked up to Derek and said as casually as he could, "When were you going to tell us about your badass powers?"

"Once I figured out how to control them. I was going to tell you as soon as I could…"

"Show me what you can do so far," Luke urged in an attempt to distract his friend. He was also genuinely curious as to what his friend could do. Derek hesitated before turning around.

"I can't do much yet. Olive gave me pointers to get me started but she told me she wasn't all that great at raising skeleton armies. Her affinity is for the riches of the earth. I've been practicing hours and hours every day. I've also been working on shadow-traveling but so far, I've been unsuccessful in that territory. Who knows, maybe I can't even do it."

"I don't know much about Underworld powers but if you ever need any help, let me know."

"Thanks Luke. So how did you find me?"

"I needed to ask you something and asked around to find where you are. Someone saw you come in the forest."

"Damn, and I thought I was being stealthy… What did you need to ask me?"

"Did Bryn ever mention any names that you didn't know who she was talking about? Like maybe she was telling you a story about a girl named Mary and you didn't know who this Mary person was or she didn't explain who Mary was?"

Derek paused before: "What?"

"My hunch is that Bryn has said her mother's name before and none of have realized it. So my earlier explanation, if Bryn for some reason mentioned a girl named Mary, I was going to do searches for a Mary Winchester. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, it does. That's a really good idea, to be honest. You have any names?"

"Uh, no. That's why I came to you. I haven't asked Silena though. I figured since you and Bryn were so close, she would've mentioned something to you."

"I can't think of anything, but if I do, you'll be the first to know. Let's head back. Oh, and Luke? Don't tell anyone about what I can do. People are already treating me differently since Bryn's death. I don't want to give them any more reasons."

"I've you got your back, Derek. I'll tell Silena for you."

"Thank you. I'm sorry for keeping it a secret from you two, but with everything going on, I wanted to feel like I could control _one_ of the surprises in my life. Guess that backfired."

"You don't need to explain yourself Derek. You had your reasons, and I know you wouldn't keep things from us unless you felt you needed to. Let's hurry back though, it's almost time for dinner."

The two boys trudged silently through the forest back to camp. Once there, they went with their respective cabins to head to dinner. Luke and Silena were the only ones who occupied the Poseidon table. Silena, after Bryn's death, had switched from the Athena cabin. Luke didn't know if it was because she didn't want him to be alone or if she didn't want to be surrounded by people anymore. Either way, he enjoyed her company, albeit that night being awkwardly quiet. After dinner, the campers headed to the big bonfire.

Suddenly, one of the wood nymphs came sprinting up to Chiron, breathlessly explaining something Luke couldn't understand. The centaur galloped off. The campers who saw the conversation, interest sparked, followed him, including Luke and Silena and Derek. When they came to a stop, Chiron was kneeling next to a girl that couldn't be older than nine years old. Her face was cut up and bruised. She had a wild look in her eyes as if she'd just gotten out of a fight.

"What's your name sweetheart?" Chiron asked gently.

"Th- Thera. Thera Espion," she whispered, looking at the gathering crowd. Her eyes met Luke's for a brief second. She smiled at him.

"How'd you get here?"

"My friend. They brought me here. They were a demigod too but we were attacked and they forced me to come here. I don't know what happened to them…" Thera's eyes were tearing up. Chiron ordered some demigods to go search for her friend. His expression was grim though.

"Let's get you to the infirmary so we can fix those wounds." He lifted the girl up into his arms and carried her off. The campers, realizing there was nothing more to be seen, went back to the campfire.

"Think she'll be okay?" Silena asked.

"She seems pretty durable. I think she'll be okay. We'll introduce ourselves tomorrow. We're pretty familiar to being the new kids on the scene so we maybe help her assimilate into life here," Luke remarked.

"Assimilate? That's a big word for you brother," Silena teased.

"Oh shut-"

"Ned Drew," Derek interrupted, stopping in his tracks.

"What?"

"Ned Drew. Bryn mentioned a person named Ned Drew before. I know it's not her mother's name but maybe he's somehow connected to her mother and maybe we can track that guy to lead us to Mrs. Winchester!"

"That's brilliant Derek!" Luke praised excitedly. "Let's go check it out!"

* * *

**Do you think the name will lead anywhere? Were you surprised by Silena's reaction? Let me know in a review :)**


	7. It's Barking Mad Part I

**To Mad_Eyed_Maddy for your review, this is my response: "Oops."**

**I know, I'm evil. Okay, enjoy! :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they've got a second."  
****~ William James**

* * *

Chapter 7: It's Barking Mad Part I

**Derek**

Luke, Silena, and Derek slipped away from the crowd heading to the campfire, and went to the Poseidon cabin instead to use Luke's laptop. He leapt into sitting position on his bed with his sister and the son of Hades plopping down on either side of him. Luke typed in the name 'Ned Drew London' in a Google search; over six million results popped up. One page was for his Facebook page. The man gave off the impression of being tall; he had sharp green eyes with light brown hair that went down to his shoulders. His Facebook page was also very secure, meaning nothing could be seen except for his name, profile and cover photo, and where he lived, which was London.

"Let's see if we find any more stuff on this guy," Luke remarked aloud. He exited out of the link and went back onto Google, scrolling through the results.

"Wait, back up!" Silena ordered. Her brother did as she told until she told him to stop. He clicked on the link she was pointing at. It was a short journal article, no pictures, on an occurrence at a major weapons business in London, the most successful one in the business. The demigods began to read the article:

_It has been a long-time speculation that Michael Drew, co-founder of Aurum Arms, has been dating his boss, Penn Winchester, the founder and current president of the most successful and fastest-rising arms company in the world. Today Michael's younger brother, Ned Drew, happily announced the couple was engaged. The workers threw a huge celebration for the couple, shooting fireworks off the top of the thirty story building. Miss Winchester later showed off her four-carat diamond ring as she and her future husband stepped out of the building that night. When asked how long they've been dating, Michael replied, "A few years now, right before we started the company. We've known each other for almost thirty years, pretty much since we were kids. I've watched her children grow up, we've helped each other when we've had our ups and downs, and now that our business is going strong and is stable, it just seemed like the next step to take."_

_Penn added, "We came from very different backgrounds, but when we met, we just simply hit it off wonderfully. When I was working for the bank, I hired Michael to watch after my kids because I trusted him the most of anyone. He made a joke at some point that if I ever wanted a butler, he would gladly do so. I took the joke but also asked him if he really wanted to and he said yes. After that he lived with me and my children full time. I had my best friend living with me. It was amazing. And then I quit my job at the bank after some personal problems which he helped me through and that's when I realized I really wanted to be with him. I asked him out. Then we started our company and our lives fell into place. We've been together ever since."_

_From Britain's top gossip blog, our best wishes go out to the happy couple and their family!_

The three demigods sat in silence for a few minutes, reading the article over and over again. Derek had a sudden realization that Bryn _had _said her mother's name without any of them noticing.

"Bryn's using her mother's name as an alias," Derek pointed out, leaning against the wall.

"She didn't think we'd try and search for her mother," Luke added.

"We need to talk to Penn Winchester. We need to warn her about what her sons are getting themselves into," Silena said.

"We can't just call her up and say 'hello, we were friends with your sons and your dead daughter. We need to warn you about what Brady and Bradley are getting themselves into.' I don't think that'd go over well," Derek said. "Plus she's one of the most highly guarded people in the business. The only people who see her are her fiancé and other top executives at the company."

"She hires people personally," Luke said, scrolling through another article. "It says right here. Penn has human resources find candidates and they go through a series of interviews, getting eliminated from the pile as they get closer to the top. The top candidates talk to her Michael first, then her."

"Can we make an appointment to talk to her? Say it's urgent?" Silena queried.

"Bad idea. They'd ask about the emergency and if we say anything about her sons, they'll put her on the phone immediately. No, we need to talk to her in person."

"How are we even going to get there? Now that Derek knows he's a son of Hades, Amphitrite and Triton won't let him on any ship and none of us can take a plane because Zeus will zap us out of the sky."

"What about shadow travel?"

"Can you do that Derek?"

"If I can, I haven't discovered the power yet. Besides, from what I've heard, Hades hasn't passed down that power in years. The last person to have had it was Nico Di Angelo and no one knows what's happened to him. Another thing, from stories I've heard, Shadow travel takes a lot of energy."

"Maybe my dad will know what to do," Luke said. He switched over to Skype and dialed his dad who thankfully was online. Mr. Jackson picked up after two rings and greeted everyone with a cheerful hello. "Dad, I have a question. Actually we all do. How would we get to London if we can't fly or go by boat or shadow travel?"

"I don't know how you'd shadow travel in the first place unless you had a kid of Hades with you. Maybe Mrs.- wait a minute, why do you need to go to London?" Percy eyed them warily.

"We think we found Bryn's mom. We wanted to talk to her."

"No matter what I do, you're going to go see her aren't you? Children of Poseidon tend to be rather… carefree? Wild? No…"

"Untamed?" Luke suggested.

"That'll work. Actually I think it suits for any child of the Big Three, but particularly Poseidon. You can't travel by boat or by air, but you can still shadow travel. Pack your things. I'll come over in the morning with your ride."

"What ride are you talking about?" Silena inquired.

Percy grinned. "You're going to think it's barking mad."

* * *

**What do you think Percy is doing? That last line should give you a hint :P Read and review people! If I get ten reviews on Wattpad and Fanfiction combined, then I'll give you a line from a future chapter, how about that? REVIEW**


	8. It's Barking Mad Part II

**Hey y'all! All three trailers for UnKnown, UnStoppable, and UnTamed are posted on the tumblr blog. Message me if you would like the link :) Okay, unfortunately, you were three reviews short of getting that one-liner that's going to happen in a far off chapter. HOWEVER, the offer still stands. Once a chapter gets ten reviews, I'll post that one-liner. Now, without further ado, here's the next chapter :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and man."  
****~Mark Twain**

* * *

Chapter 8: It's Barking Mad Part II

**Luke**

When his dad had said the three demigods were going to think the ride was 'barking mad,' Luke thought it was just a saying. He didn't realize that his dad's plan actually involved _riding a hell hound_. At first, when Mr. Jackson showed up, he didn't have anything with him. But he ushered his kids and Derek into the Poseidon cabin and shut the door.

"Most kids won't take kindly to this ride, at least not at first. Ready?" Percy said, grinning. He gave a loud, sharp, taxi whistle. A few seconds later, a black, shaggy dog, the size of a tank flashed into view. It bounded up to Percy and licked him incessantly on the face.

"That's- that's a-" Silena began.

"Hellhound," Derek finished.

"Down girl, down!" Percy laughed, gently pushing the hellhound away. He ordered her to sit; she listened, her tail thumping loudly on the wooden floor. "Kids, this is Mrs. O'Leary, my pet hellhound."

"Your pet hellhound," Luke repeated.

"Dad, didn't you almost get killed by one when you were twelve?" Silena pointed out.

"Yeah, but that's when I had a super evil titan trying to kill me. Anyways, this is your ride. She listens to whatever I say, and if I tell her to listen to you, she will. What do you say? You brave enough to ride a hellhound?"

"Hey there girl," Derek greeted, holding out his hand hesitantly for her to smell. Mrs. O'Leary gave one sniff before giving his hand a big slobbery kiss. He laughed and started stroking her. She threw herself on the ground, rolling onto her back so he could scratch her belly.

"As you can tell, she loves people as long as they're not trying to kill her or me or anyone that is my family." Luke started laughing as Mrs. O'Leary began licking his leg. Both he and Silena knelt down and pet her. "She loves you three."

"I think that's because she's getting pets," Luke remarked. "Thanks for the ride dad. I don't have any qualms about this at all."

"Qualms?" Silena mused.

"It means-"

"I know what it means, I just didn't know you did."

"Oh shut it."

"Don't kill each other you two. Derek, I'm giving you that task while you're away. I have some business at the company to take care of so please don't make me regret helping you in this. By the way, I suggest not telling your mother. I may not have told her you were going to London."

"Uh, why?" Silena demanded.

"She has a lot of stuff going on between work and worrying about you guys and… well, it's just been a lot. If you need anything, let me know. Give me a call, okay? And a warning, travelling that far with three of you, it's going to wear her out pretty badly. You'll need to give Mrs. O'Leary two or three days to recuperate, all right? And when you need her, just give a good old taxi whistle. Now, good luck and don't get killed." Percy hugged the kids bye and left the cabin.

"So, anyone know how to speak dog?" Luke queried.

"No, but I think she's pretty smart, aren't you girl?" Derek said, standing up. Mrs. O'Leary did the same. "Everyone have their backpacks?"

Luke and Silena nodded. The three demigods managed to get onto the hellhounds back. Luke politely asked her if she could take them to London. He gripped onto her collar, feeling like this was not going to be an easy ride.

Long story short, he was right.

Luke decided it felt like his face was about to be peeled off because they were going so fast. In other words, it was totally awesome and if Derek had this power, Luke envied him greatly. He could use it to get anywhere in the world without having to pay for airfare or anything. It was so useful!

Silena enjoyed the journey less so. She appeared very pale afterwards. Derek seemed fine, but since he was a child of Hades, it probably shouldn't negatively affect him that much.

The group landed in the middle of a park. None of them knew which exactly.

"I guess we should try and find a cheap hotel to stay in," Derek said, looking around at their surroundings.

"I-" Luke stopped when his cell started ringing. He picked it up.

"LUKE CHARLES CASTELLAN!" Mrs. Jackson barked. Luke yanked the phone away from his ear, rubbing it ruefully.

"Hi mom," he replied.

"Are you out of your mind?!"

"Uh, how did you find out?"

"Chiron went looking for you three when you didn't show up to lunch and dinner, and found your laptop looking up London. He made the connection. Especially since it was an article about Aurum Arms who happens to be run by a person named Winchester."

"Mom, her first name is Penn."

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?"

"The girl that we encountered when we were with Lupa, she told Silena her name was Penn. And then when I asked Lupa if she would support us in the war, she said Penn had convinced her to serve on our side. Penn was Bryn's mother's name."

"I thought Bryn's mother was dead?"

"We did too, until we met her twin brothers. They had the same mother as her, we know they did. We _have_ to talk to Mrs. Winchester. Penn is using that name for a reason."

"You think it's Bryn, don't you?" Annabeth asked gently, although it was more of a statement.

"Yeah," Luke mumbled. "I've been having dreams of her and her brothers and I learn of their plans and then when I go to the destination they were in and ask the locals about them, what I dreamed comes true. And that tornado in Oklahoma? I dreamed about her telling this girl named Hallie that she was going to create a distraction while her brother got her out and what better distraction than a tornado? And Hallie isn't there anymore. The house isn't there. The tornado hit it. That was the only place the tornado destroyed. That's not a coincidence!"

"I'm not saying it isn't. I'm just wondering if Bryn is alive, how she survived."

"It's Bryn, mom. Who knows how she does half the stuff she does."

"Very true. Listen, I have two things. Since I can't come get you from over there, I booked you three a hotel room at a very nice place, and while I don't need to tell you this, I'm going to anyway: Behave yourself. I'll text you the address. Second, how in Athena's name did you get to London if you didn't fly or go by boat?"

"Uh, we… shadow travelled…"

"Shadow travelled? None of the Hades kids could manage getting three demigods halfway across the Atlantic without killing themselves. Unless you didn't use a- PERSEUS JACKSON DID YOU LET THEM USE MRS. O'LEARY?"

Luke heard his father grunting and muttering an 'ow' before coming onto the phone. "Hi, son. Mrs. O'Leary okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine. She's decided to take a nap in the middle of the park we landed in."

"Good, you won't need to feed her. She'll find food on her own. Maybe have a water bowl ready for her though when she comes into your hotel room."

"Our hotel room can fit a hellhound?"

"More or less. Might have to make room on the floor. Oh, and hide your shoes. She's going through a phase where she likes to play fetch with them."

"Good to know."

"For the record, you are all so grounded when you get back. And tell Derek's he's not out of the woods either. His parents are furious. Now, go find Mrs. Winchester. And sweetie, if your father has mysteriously disappeared when you get back, don't question it. Love you!" Mrs. Jackson hung up, leaving her son rather worried about his father's well-being. Luke knew never to bet against Annabeth Jackson.

"So what did mom say?" Silena asked.

"How we got here, how we're all grounded when we get back, including Derek, not to question if dad has mysteriously disappeared when we get back, and that she booked a hotel for us. She'll be texting me the address. But I'm pretty sure this is like a… a posh hotel because apparently our room can fit Mrs. O'Learty, so maybe we should go buy better clothes?" Luke glanced down at his torn jeans and University of Texas t-shirt.

"That might be a good idea. Maybe we can work out a plan on how to get to Mrs. Winchester while we do so," Silena remarked.

"Let's do it," Derek agreed. Leaving the resting hellhound in the park, the trio trooped off in search of better clothes.

* * *

**How do you think the trio is going to get to Mrs. Winchester? Will Bryn's mother even believe them? Find out in upcoming chapters :) Review people if you want that sneak peek one-liner!**


	9. I Chop Off Poseidon's Hand

**Enjoy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**An organization, no matter how well designed, is only as good as the people who live and work in it."  
****~Dee Hock**

* * *

Chapter 9: I Chop Off Poseidon's Hand

**Silena**

The boys ended up buying a few nice pairs of trousers, polo shirts, and one suit and tie each. Silena bought a few business dresses and a pair of black pumps that were surprisingly tall and comfy at the same time. They all changed into one of their new outfits. Luke chose black pants with a white polo shirt. Derek chose khaki-colored. The trio then hopped in a cab that took them to their hotel. As Luke had predicted, it was very posh. Everyone coming in and out looked like they had money. The trio walked in and to the check-in desk. A woman was there, her fingers typing away at the computer. She looked up at them, dubious surprise on her face.

"How may I help you?" she asked in a monotone voice.

Silena took charge. "Yes, hello, my mother booked the three of us a room. I believe she put it under Annabeth Jackson?"

The woman's face changed instantly. "Annabeth Jackson? From Olympus Cruise Lines?"

"Yes. I'm her daughter, this is my brother, and this is the son of the company's vice president, Derek Michaels."

"It's an honor to meet you. I took a cruise just this past summer on your parents' cruise line and it was the best I've ever been on! Please give me two moments, and I'll have your keys programmed for you immediately. Oh, and my name is Kate. I'll be right back!"

She disappeared in the office, leaving the three demigods by themselves. Luke turned to his sister and said, "Since when do you know how to handle people like that?"

"I just winged it. Now shush, she's coming back." Silena faced the desk again. Kate handed the keys over to her with a hundred-watt grin. After the whole spiel about if they needed anything (anything at all), that they could call the front desk at any time, Silena and the boys headed up to their room. Luke went straight to the bathroom, claiming that he hadn't used the bathroom between the time that they'd been shadow-travelling and waiting for Silena to pick the right outfits. When he shut the door, Derek said, "So now I'm just the vice president's son to you?"

Silena didn't look at him as she unpacked her bags. "We're not dating anymore Derek. And I just needed to reiterate that she had three very rich people standing in front of her. I don't like using my money as an incentive for people to be nice to me, but her attitude was pissing me off, and she was obviously one of those people impressed by other people who have lots of money."

"So if you introduced me to other people that weren't like her, how would introduce me as?"

Silena sighed in annoyance. "Why is it so important anyway?"

"Because I need to know where I stand with you. Are we friends? Are we acquaintances? What? What are we now, Silena?"

"I don't know, okay? I don't know right now," she admitted. Derek nodded but said nothing else. Instead, he pulled out his laptop and started surfing the internet. When Luke came out of the bathroom, he plopped down on the couch, saying, "Wake me up when it's time for dinner."

"Alright," Silena said, pulling out her laptop. Within seconds, her brother was fast asleep. Derek presently slumped over, eyes closed, on the bed. This left Silena the only one awake. She scrolled through the articles on Aurum Arms. One, the most recent, was an interview with Michael Drew. The picture of him at the top showed a man in a sharp-looking black suit, red tie, and short, cropped hair. He was extremely buff, appeared relatively tall, at least Luke's height, and he grinned from ear to ear as he leant against the corner of his desk. The article itself spoke of his future wedding. Apparently they didn't have many details about it yet- they'd barely started planning. All they had decided was that it was going to be a big event. They were inviting all their workers because, according to Mr. Drew and Mrs. Winchester, if it hadn't been for their employees, the company never would've survived. The article transitioned into the future of the business. Mr. Drew explained that in two days' time, he was hosting more interviews for a future job position. They were in the final stretch of it.

Reading that last sentence, Silena finally started formulating an idea on how to get to Mrs. Winchester, even if it meant getting to Mr. Drew first. Glancing over at her brother and Derek, she wondered if she should wake them to help her with this. It'd be easier alone… but it'd be better with back up… Silena bit her lip. What would Bryn do?

_Better to ask for forgiveness than permission._

Silena made up her mind. Writing down where she was going on a sticky note and placing it on her laptop screen, she grabbed her purse and silently left the room. If there was one thing she had learned in the past two years of being a demigod, it was that if she wanted to find something out, she couldn't wait for the answer to come to her. She had to find it herself. But back then, she'd been much more timid, much shyer. Silena had changed. Her personality, her demeanor, it'd changed. She was less passive, more willing to defend herself, less willing to take crap from people.

Silena hailed down a cab; the man was very polite in asking her where she needed to go. When the cab began driving, she leaned back in the seat. She was going to pull this off. She had to. If this failed, Mrs. Winchester would know people were trying to reach her, and it'd be ten times more difficult to get to her.

The cab pulled up to the headquarters of Aurum Arms. After paying him, Silena got out. People were coming and going, having set destinations. But knowing if she didn't act like she knew what she was doing, her whole plan would go down the gutter. Taking a deep breath, Silena strode in, head held high. She went to the front desk where a woman smiled pleasantly at her, holding up her finger to silently say one minute, as she was on the phone.

"Yes, Mister Chablis. We will have your order sent to you soon. Have a good day, sir!" The woman hung up and said kindly, "How may I help you, miss?"

"Hello, my name is Silena Jackson. I'm here on urgent business about the safety standards of your building. Unfortunately my boss was unable to call ahead about this as something happened to our communications line earlier this morning and we've been unable to get them up and working yet. This is my first time working with this business, so I'm not sure who I discuss the issue with. Would it be with Mr. Drew or Mrs. Winchester?" Silena was lying so badly and at first, she didn't think the woman was going to buy it. However, miraculously, she did.

"Oh dear. I'll call Mr. Drew right now and tell him you're coming up. To get there, take the elevator up to the top floor. That's the floor with Mr. Drew and Mrs. Winchester's office. His is on the left. Just take a seat out there and he'll call you in. I hope the issue can be resolved!"

"Me too. Hopefully it won't be too costly for the company either. I know of the expenses they'll be having soon with the wedding and all!"

"Oh yes! I can't wait for it! Mrs. Winchester will be such a beautiful bride," the woman exclaimed. Thanking her, Silena got into the elevator, holding back her grin until the doors shut. She'd actually gotten away with this so far. Once she was in Mr. Drew's office, she'd just have to convince him to listen to her even though she had completely lied to see him. It would be difficult, but if she had pulled it off getting up to the top floor, she believed she could get him to listen to her.

When she got up to the top floor, Mr. Drew's secretary informed Silena that he was out at lunch but was heading over back to the building. Silena thanked her and sat down, taking a deep breath and trying to act calm.

Hours seemed to pass, but in reality, it'd only been thirty minutes before Mr. Drew appeared.

"Hello, you must be Silena Jackson. I'm Michael Drew. I apologize for the delay. There was an accident on the Tower Bridge, an eight car pile-up, and you know how bad London traffic is on a good day. The trip from the place I was at only takes about five minutes to get there. In all honesty I probably could've walked here faster, but they were even stopping pedestrians. All right, enough of my excuses, come in Miss Jackson. Let's discuss-" Mr. Drew was interrupted by his phone ringing. Groaning, he answered it. "Hello… or, hey George… oh great… this day is just fantastic… All right, thank you. I'm coming down now." Hanging up, he looked at Silena and said, "Just take a seat in my office and I'll be back in a minute. My wallet fell out of my pocket, and I have to go retrieve it."

With that, he disappeared. Silena obediently sat down, crossing her legs to prevent herself from fidgeting. While her thoughts took a dark turn about what could happen if her plan failed, the door opened. A woman in a navy dress, nude heels that were at least four inches tall, and light brown hair walked in. She smiled at Silena as she walked over to the desk.

The resemblance was startling. From the shape of the eyes, to the nose, to the mouth, to even the resting facial expression, Silena didn't think as she said, "Bryn?"

The person, who had been digging through files, whirled around. Silena sat stone still as the person pointed a gun at her. With a snarl, the woman ordered, "You have five seconds to tell me who you are and how you know that name or I'm going to pull this trigger."

* * *

**Derek**

Luke cried out, jerking Derek out of his sleep. He snapped his head in his friend's direction. The Jackson boy was sitting up, rubbing his head.

"Luke?"

"Sorry, Derek. I yelled, didn't I?" he said.

"Yeah. Nightmare?"

"Yeah… been having them a lot recently. Where's Silena?"

Derek looked around. She was nowhere to be seen. "She was here when I fell asleep."

Luke got up and walked over to her laptop where a sticky note could be seen on the screen. Luke pulled it off. A few seconds later, he plopped down in the chair. "She's gone to Aurum Arms. Alone. To talk to Mr. Drew and Mrs. Winchester."

"Is she mad?!" Derek demanded, snatching the note out of his friend's hand. "Does she know how stupid it is to go alone?!"

"We have to get to her. We have to back her up."

"But how? For all we know, they've already found her and have thrown her in jail!" Panic started rising in his chest. If something went wrong, the consequences could be disastrous. Looking at the picture of Mr. Drew in his office, Derek figured the guy was pretty chill, but still…

"She gets one call right? She would've called us. Or mom and dad. And then they would've called us. No, she's still okay, but we need to get to her. Any ideas?" Luke queried.

"No… we need to get to her fast. Mrs. O'Leary is too tired to shadow travel still. Oh gods what are we going to do?!"

"Easy Derek, don't go raising a skeleton army in this hotel," Luke joked lightly. But Derek couldn't take it easy. His worry over Silena was overwhelming. He felt a gush of wind move past his face. Opening his eyes to see what it was, he found himself in a whole new place.

Literally.

He was on top of a bridge. The Tower Bridge it looked like. Then it dawned on Derek on how he'd gotten here because there was only one explanation.

He'd just shadow-travelled.

* * *

**Luke**

Derek disappeared in the blink of an eye. It took a second to register with Luke that his friend had just shadow-travelled. In aggravation, he shouted, "Come on!"

Grumbling at the fact his friend had disappeared on him _and_ that his sister had left with no warning, Luke grabbed his suit jacket and dashed out the door. Upon reaching outside, he tried to find a cab but there were none to be found. Mentally swearing in every language he knew how, Luke decided to run to Aurum Arms. It wasn't that far, just about ten blocks away from the hotel, but when you're trying to weave your way in and out of a crowd, it becomes extremely difficult. He received more than a few nasty remarks as he accidentally crashed into people. But he didn't care; all he could think about was getting to his sister and Derek (depending on whether or not he'd actually shadow-travelled there). Finally, Luke skidded to a stop in front of Aurum Arms. How was he going to get up to the top floor with all the guards? How did Silena manage to do it?

_Silena, where the hell are you?_ He mentally demanded.

_Top floor. I found Mrs. Winchester. _Silena replied. Luke couldn't actually believe she replied. It was still weird to knowing he could talk to his sister through their minds.

_You sound odd. What's going on?_

_Oh, you know, just have gun pointed at my face._

_WHAT DID YOU DO?_

_The resemblance really is startling between Bryn and her mother._

_That does not explain why you have a gun pointed at your face! _Luke chastised.

_Apparently if you say the name Bryn in front of her, she gets very defensive._ Silena commented, sounding way too casual for a person who was pretty much staring death in the face.

_If that gun doesn't kill you, I'm going to! I'll be up in a minute!_

_Don't you-_ Silena began, but Luke cut off the connection between the two. He walked inside, acting like he knew where he was going. He stood in awe at the massive fountain in the middle of the lobby. Any demigod would realize it was a tribute to the Big Three. Zeus held a gold lightning bolt, Poseidon a bronze trident, and Hades an Obsidian Helm of Darkness. Luke's ogling stopped when two guards accosted him. Apparently, the whole building, or at least the guards, had been put on high alert about the "infiltration" that was caused by Silena.

"What's your business here?" One of them asked, glaring at Luke.

"I'm here for… I'm here for my interview," he lied. Deciding he best go along with this fib of his even though he had no idea where it came from, he added, "What's happened? I wasn't stopped last time I came here."

"There's been a breach in security. Let me see some ID and I'll get your badge for you."

"Let me see if I… crap, I think I left it in my other jacket. Listen, do you really need my ID? I've already been here before and I can't afford to be late. This is my big chance to actually do something with my life that doesn't involve being chased by megalomaniacs and chasing after people who are supposedly dead but aren't and my current job just really sucks at the moment and I really want a different one. Is that too much to ask?" Luke ranted.

The two guards stared at him before the second one went, "Megalomaniac?"

"Of all that I just said, you question the word 'megalomaniac'?" Luke stated. "That's… that's impressive. Really. And Silena thinks I'm thick." Before the guards could respond, he simultaneously punched them in the nose. Taking advantage of the distraction, Luke jumped over them and began running to the elevator. Guards slid in front of it, their police batons brandished and waiting to clobber him over the head.

"Come on guys, I'm just trying to save my sister!" he complained. One man tried to tackle Luke from the side, but the demigod dodged it, jumping back. He leapt into the fountain, feeling the power surge in him. What was he doing? He was a grandson of Poseidon with awesome water powers. He focused on the water swirling at his feet. It responded to his thoughts immediately, raising up. It was probably a bad idea to alert the Muggles that there were people in this world that could control the elements, but Luke had other priorities at the moment. In triumph, he cheered, "Yeah! You wanna come get me? Well you and whose army?!"

He shouldn't have said that.

The guards charged at him. He realized his sword wouldn't help in fighting them. These were regular people, not demigods, and Celestial Bronze couldn't hurt regular humans. Looking around frantically for anything that he could defend himself with. His eyes settled on the bonze trident being held by the marble statue of Poseidon.

"Sorry grandpa," Luke apologized before using his sword to slash the hand off the statue. Catching the trident, he turned around, knocking a guard over in the process. One came at him and Luke butted him with the blunt end of the trident, sending the guar sprawling into the water. Before any others could attack Luke, he hopped on a wave he created and surfed his way to the door to the stairwell. He hopped off and threw the door open, running with the trident in hand. It was a stupid idea taking the stairs to the top of a thirty story building, but in a bind, it was the only option available. Luke was panting as he reached the top of the stairs. He hadn't stopped once and in five minutes, he was at his destination. He threw the door open to Mr. Drew's office. Silena sat still in a chair; Derek stood on the desk with his hands in the air. For some odd reason, he was wearing a kilt over his jeans. Just as Luke was about to say something, someone struck him on the head. His world went black for a few moments. When he woke up, he was on the floor, looking up at the ceiling. A man with a gun, pointing it directly at Luke's face, stood above him.

"Okay," Luke grunted, remaining still. "I think we got off on the wrong foot. My name is Luke Jackson. That's my sister right there, Silena. We were friends with Bryn. I swear Derek- who's the guy on the desk- and I didn't know she was going to lie her way up here. We came to talk. That's all. I promise. I don't need to know your name sir. We did our homework before we came. You're Mr. Drew. You're marrying Mrs. Winchester in a few months or so. Congratulations by the way."

"How do you know the name Bryn?" Mr. Drew commanded.

"She went to Camp Half-Blood. She, along with Derek, helped me and my sister, assimilate into demigod life there after our parents were kidnapped by a megalomaniac who we are still currently trying to stop, just for your information." Luke groaned as he rolled over onto his stomach. Mr. Drew placed his foot on the demigod's back, keeping him there. With his face smashed against the floor, Luke added, "What did you hit me in the head with?"

"That's impossible," a woman said from the other side of the room. "Bryn died when she was little. The Cyclops… they took her. They told me they killed her."

Turning his head at the sound of the voice, Luke stared at the woman. With the exception of the brown hair and the obvious age difference, it was clear that in her younger days, she was a spitting image of her daughter. There was no doubt in his mind that this was Mrs. Winchester. Luke lifted his head. "I can prove it to you. May I?"

Mrs. Winchester looked at Mr. Drew, an understanding passing through them. The latter took his foot off of Luke's back and warned, "No funny business."

Sitting up, the Jackson boy took out his phone, unlocked it, and pulled up a video of him and Bryn on their trip to Mexico. He handed his phone to Mrs. Winchester who knelt down next to him, casting him a suspicious glare. Luke hit play and watched the video:

"_Say hi to the camera Bryn!" Luke called out._

"_Why are you filming me?" Bryn laughed. "We are on the top floor of a hotel with the most amazing view of the ocean and you're filming _me_?"_

"_I'm a grandson of Poseidon. The real beauty of the ocean is underneath, so yes, you are much prettier to film. So what's the agenda for the day?"_

"_Well, let's see…" She walked up to the camera. She wore a leopard print top, her hair tumbled down over her shoulders, and her eyes sparkled with excitement. Bryn smiled and said, "We're going to Disney World today. That'll be a first for me. After that, you, me, Silena, and Derek will come home and get ready for dinner and-"_

"_What is it with women and heels? They look painful."_

"_Maybe I wear heels because they're fun and cute and make my legs look awesome? And if anyone pisses me off, they'll have a four-inch stiletto impaled in their foot?"_

"_This is why I never want to piss you off. And I always knew heels were weapons in disguise."_

"_Oh you do piss me off, but that's why I zap you in the butt."_

"_You know you still love me."_

"_Whatever you say, Sharkboy."_

"_You know you do, Cat Woman."_

"_I never said I didn't. Now, I have to go get my purse ready. We're leaving in five minutes. And you still haven't changed out of your pajamas."_

The video ended with Luke swearing in Greek as he rolled out of bed. Mrs. Winchester sat there silently for a few moments before hitting the replay button. Each time she did, the sound of Bryn's voice made Luke's heartache become worse and worse.

After watching the video about ten times, Mrs. Winchester finally said, "She's alive?"

"Why were you in the same room with her? And in your pajamas?" Mr. Drew demanded.

"Oh Michael, get your foot off the boy," she retorted. Looking at Luke, she repeated, "She's alive?"

It was Silena who spoke up. "No… n-not anymore. She died almost two weeks ago."

Mrs. Winchester paled. Mr. Drew knelt down next to his fiancée, placing a comforting hand on her back. He inquired, "What happened?"

"She was on a quest to save me. That megalomaniac I mentioned earlier? She kidnapped me to get to Bryn. I tried warning her… I tried to tell h-her not to come, that it was… it was a trap…" Luke's breathing became rapid. He'd had one episode like this two days after Bryn's funeral, but he didn't know what it was. He didn't know what was happening to him. All he knew was that he couldn't breathe; he couldn't stop shaking and trembling; he couldn't stop the sweat beading up on his forehead; he couldn't stop the incessant ringing in his ears; he couldn't stop the dizziness as he tried to brace himself against the wall. He barely heard Silena calling out his name in alarm but nothing she was saying made any sense. He kept mumbling that he'd tried to stop Bryn, he'd tried to tell Bryn it was a trap, but that Bryn wouldn't listen to him, that her death was all his fault.

Someone placed their hand on his forehead. Within seconds, he went unconscious.

* * *

**And you finally meet the second mystery person: Mrs. Winchester! And poor Luke with his panic attack :( Come on people, I need reviews! And I have a really awesome (and funny) excerpt for you people! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!**


	10. A Force To Be Reckoned

**Poor Luke last chapter :( Enjoy this one!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Losing him was like hearing every goodbye ever said to me all at once."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 10: A Force To Be Reckoned

**Silena**

"What did you do to him?!" Silena demanded, facing Mrs. Winchester.

"I simply knocked him out. Guessing by your reactions, this is the first time you've seen him have a panic attack, isn't it?" She said kindly.

"Bryn's death really screwed him up. He doesn't talk about it. He refuses to. He won't even tell us about what he went through when he was being held hostage. I didn't know he was having panic attacks or if he's ever had them before this one," Derek explained.

"These must've just started. I've never seen this happen in seventeen years," Silena remarked. "How long will he be out?"

"Depends on how exhausted he is. It could be a couple hours, it could be ten. It depends on the person. Let me call the interviewees and tell them we need to reschedule. I have a feeling the lot of us have quite a bit to talk about. Michael, would you take Luke to the car? Make sure you're not seen. Don't want the poor boy in the tabloids," Mrs. Winchester ordered.

"Where are we going?" Silena asked.

"Back to our home. Luke needs a better place to recuperate. I'll take the next few days off. I'll call security too to let them know the security breach is not here anymore. As long as you're with me, you'll be fine. Where are the three of you staying?"

"This hotel about ten blocks down the street. My mom booked it for us."

"If you want, you're welcome to stay with me and Michael. Our place can hold all of you. You may be safer with us."

"We wouldn't want to intrude…"

"You were friends of my daughter. Any friends of my daughter are always welcome in our house," Mrs. Winchester assured. "Why don't I go back with you to the hotel and help you grab your bags?"

"It's fine, I can do it."

"Silena, I'll go with Mr. Drew and help him with Luke. You go with Mrs. Winchester," Derek intervened.

"I'm fine by myself," Silena snapped.

"Last time one of us went by ourselves, one of us didn't come back!" Derek argued. Realizing his outburst, he told her much softer, "Please take Mrs. Winchester with you?"

Silena stared him, not saying anything but nodded. He gave her a grateful smile before helping Mr. Drew get Luke out of the room and downstairs. Mrs. Winchester grabbed her purse and with Silena following, the two walked down to the hotel. It didn't take long for the Jackson daughter to make sure all their things were together and to check out of the place. Within ten minutes, the two women were heading over to Mrs. Winchester's home. Silena gaped at it. She knew this place had not come cheap. But with the success of both Mr. Drew and Mrs. Winchester, they could afford it. Derek came out to help with the bags, informing that Luke was resting in one of the guest rooms upstairs and that Mr. Drew had started making lunch.

After dropping the bags off in the other guest rooms and changing into jeans and a cami, she went downstairs. Mrs. Winchester had appropriated the cooking job because according to Mr. Drew, he'd caught his jeans on fire. Derek came down a few moments later in jeans and t-shirt.

"So," Silena began, in order to get the conversation started because it was awkward sitting in the silence. "What made you begin Aurum Arms?"

"Bryn, actually. After the Cyclops attacked us and took her, I swore to myself I wouldn't let myself be unarmed again. So, I quit my job as a sales manager, took a loan out from the bank, and bought the building. From there, I hired Michael as vice president and co-founder, hired some demigod friends, and started making weapons. We supply things for the British and American militaries, but, we also supply demigods with requested weapons. One of our biggest buyers is a wine owner in Nevada. Pollux Chablis."

"We know him!" Derek exclaimed.

"Do you?"

"Helped us on a quest. Sorry, continue your story."

Mrs. Winchester smiled at him. "The business boomed. I have a demigod weapon in every room of this house, multiple ones, so I'm never unable to arm myself again. When Bradley and Brady were born, I started training them as soon as they could walk and talk. They were late bloomers though. That might've been from them being born prematurely. The stress from the kidnapping of Bryn made me go into labor early. The twins barely survived. They're fighters, just like their sister… Bryn started early. I didn't realize I wasn't supposed to put her in this chair-like thing that the baby could walk around in. It taught her how to walk early, and then she learned to run. The gods helped me when she began to run. Michael and I could barely catch her. She did not like her baths. It's a good thing she was immune to electricity because she was always electrifying the water. Got more shocks than I care to admit. Poor Michael had one of his shirts completely fried off."

"Bryn found that extremely amusing," Mr. Drew laughed.

"She had a thing about zapping people. First time I ever saw her, she had this guy following her around, and she stormed into the main house telling Chiron to get the guy to stop following her or she was going to turn him into fried Zeke-chini. The guy's name was Zeke, for the record. As the kid was leaving, he jumped in mid-air and that smirk on Bryn's face said it all. Then she would zap my brother in the butt whenever he'd annoy her," Silena reminisced.

"Which was a lot," Derek added. "But they were the best of friends."

"Which one of you knew her the longest?" Mrs. Winchester queried, setting down the plates in front of them.

"I did," Derek said. "I met her right when she came to camp pretty much. I was the only one she'd really talk to. We just hit it off for some reason and were inseparable ever since. It wasn't that Bryn wasn't popular, but it wasn't like she didn't have any friends. She was very reserved and I think the way she carried herself intimidated people. I'll admit, if I saw her now and didn't know who she was, she'd scare the crap out of me. But once you got to know her, she was a lot of fun."

"She was fiercely protective of her friends too. Especially Derek and Luke," Silena commented. "Saved my brother's butt more times than I can remember."

"If you want, I have pictures on my phone. Luke has the most, but I have some too if you want to see," Derek offered.

"I'd like that. Why don't we finish lunch up first? We'll look at the pictures in the living room," Mrs. Winchester said. "Michael made it where we can see the pictures on our phones on our TV."

"Are you a demigod Mr. Drew?" Silena inquired.

"Son of Hephaestus. I'm better with machines than I am people, but that's never been the case with Penn here." He smiled lovingly at his fiancée. After that, the conversation revolved around Silena and Derek's lives. Both studiously avoided saying they'd been in a relationship. Mrs. Winchester could probably pick up on that though. They finished lunch about an hour later. As Mrs. Winchester was cleaning up, she told Silena and Derek, "Why don't you two go take a nap? I have a feeling the excitement from today has left you both exhausted. And the shadow-travelling on your part, Derek. It must've been strenuous if that was your first time."

"Yeah… I didn't necessarily know how to control it. I may've crashed a wedding at some point. In Scotland. Which would explain why I ended up in kilt… sort of," he admitted sheepishly.

"Go get some rest. I'll make dinner but if neither of you are up by then, I'll save it for you for later."

"Thank you, Mrs. Winchester," Silena said gratefully. With that, she and Derek headed upstairs to the guest rooms.

* * *

**Luke**

The room was unfamiliar. The bed was not the place where he'd passed out, despite it being comfy. Luke sat up, looking around. His backpack was on an armchair situated next to a window. Speaking of the window, the only light coming through came from the moon. How late was it? Quietly getting up, he tiptoed out of his room. He peered into one room and no one was there. He looked in another. No one there. He did this to five rooms, and not one had a single person in it. What was going on? Luke crept downstairs. Again, not another soul in sight.

Officially freaked out, he went back upstairs to the room he'd been in. But this time, he wasn't alone. A blonde figure paced in the center of the room. Upon seeing her, Luke realized this must've been a dream because that could be the only way she would be here.

"Bryn?" he croaked out. Her head lifted in his direction.

"Luke," Bryn breathed.

"Am I dreaming?" he asked. She nodded. "So… this whole thing? It's not real? It's just a figment of my imagination?"

"Just because it's a dream does not mean it's not real," she said.

"Does that mean- are you-"

"Real? Technically. It's complicated to explain." Luke didn't care what else she had to say. He strode across the room, enveloping her in a hug. Her arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him close.

"I'm so sorry, Bryn. I'm sorry," he apologized. He repeated the words over and over until she pulled away, putting a finger to his lips.

"Shhh. It's not your fault. Come on, let's sit down, okay?" She led him over to the bed. He sat against the headboard; she sat cross-legged in front of him.

"It is my fault Bryn," Luke whispered. "I got myself captured. I didn't convince you not to come. I knew- I knew it was a trap and I still let you come. Hannah, she… they don't think I saw what happened to you but I did… I didn't want to believe it when I- when I woke up. I thought it was a dream and when I came to… oh gods." He put his head in his hands, trying to calm his breathing. He couldn't let himself have another attack. He couldn't…

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Luke! Hey, look at me," Bryn ordered gently, taking his hands in hers. "My death was not your fault. I died on my own terms. Not many demigods get that chance. I was one of the lucky few."

"What do you mean you died on your own terms?"

"I died getting to save my friends. You're all alive, aren't you?"

Something about her words struck Luke as odd. It was almost is if…

"You knew you weren't going to come back, didn't you?" Luke stated.

Bryn smiled sadly. "Yeah, I did."

"But if you knew, why did you come after me?!"

"Because I wouldn't have been able to live with myself knowing that one of you had died because I had stayed put. You were my family. Family comes first. Always."

"But Bryn, I'm going to die anyway. Hannah placed that curse on me and- hang on, what field are you in?"

She looked at him in confusion. "Field?"

"Tell me you're in Elysium. If not, I'll- I'll talk to Poseidon! I'll have him convince Hades to let you into Elysium!"

"He wouldn't be able to do that. And I'm not sure what field I'm in yet. The judges are still deciding, so I'm just waiting idle. However, perks of being the niece of the God of the Dead is that you can convince him to let you talk to loved ones until your fate's decided," Bryn laughed.

"So what are you doing while you wait?" Luke questioned, brushing a piece of hair away that had fallen in her face.

She bit her lip, responding sheepishly, "Watching over you three. I'm worrying incessantly."

"We do have a tendency to find trouble."

"More like trouble finds you."

"Do you know where we are now?"

"My mum's house," Bryn said without missing a beat.

"So… you know she's alive?"

"Yeah, I knew before I died. Bradley and Brady told me, and yes, I know they're my brothers."

"Bryn?"

"Hmm?"

"I don't believe you're dead. Not really," He declared.

She raised her eyebrows at him. "Luke, I was impaled by a stalac- stalag- the pointy one that hangs from the side of caves. I always get confused as to which is which. Point is, I doubt I could survive that. Everyone has their limits to how much they can survive. I'm pretty sure being impaled will end anyone's life pretty fast."

"So why am I dreaming about you and your brothers recruiting demigods? Why am I dreaming about you conspiring with Hannah?" he demanded softly.

A flicker of surprise went over his friend's face. "You've been dreaming about me?"

"Yeah, and in it, you're serving Hannah. What's even worse is that some of the dreams I've had have come _true_. What are you doing?"

"Listen to me, the Bryn you're dreaming about _is not me_. I'm dead. So promise me you'll stay away from her."

"Then if it's not you, then I need to tell you what your doppelganger is up to. She's saved a girl named Hallie, a daughter of Hades. Then she said she needed to get a guy named Scott and she did. I don't know why she needed them though. And what's more is she's using your mom's name as an alias when she has brown hair is what I've figured. And she's almost… helped us. She got Lupa to join our side in the fight."

"I don't care who she's rescuing and what alias she's using. That Bryn is a force to be reckoned with so-"

"And you weren't?" Luke interrupted, smirking at her.

"Don't try to change the subject," she chastised airily, but she was smiling. "As I was saying, the Bryn you're dreaming about is a force to be reckoned with. You said she's working for Hannah right? Then that means she has many, many resources to her advantage that she can use against you and Silena and Derek. So promise me you'll stay away from her. Promise me Luke!"

"I can't promise outright, but I'll promise I'll try to stay away from her to the best of my ability."

"I have a feeling that's the best I'll get out of you…" Bryn stood up. Luke looked up at her curiously. With a sad smile, she said, "I must be going."

"What? No! We've barely talked!" he protested, scrambling up. "You can't leave yet!"

"You never did make it easy for me to leave you," Bryn remarked, cupping his face. His hands went up to hers.

"Promise me you'll come back to talk to me," he whispered.

"I promise to try," she said. Bryn kissed him on the cheek. She began to walk away but he pulled her into a hug, kissing her on the head.

"I'd actually kiss you if I didn't think my dad was watching," she pointed out.

"You think he'd fry me if you kissed me in my dream?" he queried.

"I don't really want to find out. Now Luke, I really have to go now. Get some rest, okay?" He nodded as Bryn finally left. Luke leaned his head back and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. When he opened them, he was in his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"You're awake," a woman's voice said. Sitting up, Luke saw Mrs. Winchester standing in the doorway. "Sorry, once a mother, always a mother. I just was checking on you. You've been out for a few while now."

"How long?" Luke asked.

"Fourteen hours. It's three in the morning right now."

"_Fourteen hours_?"

"You had a panic attack earlier. Your sister and Derek didn't know what to do, Michael and I didn't either. So I put a knock out spell on you. Depending on the exhaustion of the person, they can be out for a few minutes or a few hours. In your case, I have a feeling you haven't been getting much sleep lately."

"No," he admitted. "Nightmares have been causing me issues."

"Did you just have one? Is that why you're up?"

"No, quite the opposite actually. Bryn came to visit me."

"What'd she say?"

"There's a… complicated situation going on right now. She made me promise to stay away from this girl. Problem is, I need to know who this girl really is. Whose side she's really on."

"I can't sleep. Too much excitement for me in one day. Why don't I make us a cup of tea and a bowl of ice cream and you can bring me up to speed on where exactly you are in this war?" Mrs. Winchester offered. The ice cream sounded too good to pass up so Luke agreed. The two of them went downstairs. He sat on one of the bar stools while Bryn's mother began making their snack. He offered to help her but she just waved him off, saying it was no problem, she didn't need help.

"I never did ask Derek and Silena this because we only talked about Bryn for a little less than thirty minutes before I had them go to bed, but I got the gist that you and her were rather close. So my question is, how close were you?"

"We were never anything more than friends, if that's what you're wondering. Zeus and Poseidon wouldn't allow us to be anything more. I think Bryn knew why. She seemed to know everything before it happened."

"How'd you two become such good friends? Usually children of the Big Three are friends but not to the degree you two were."

"Apparently sharing near-death experiences brings you two pretty close together," Luke joked lightly. "She saved my life multiple times. I saved her from drowning on a cruise ship when Amphitrite and Triton tried to sink it. They locked her in her room and water came in there. I went back for her, broke down the door, and got us out of there. It was really after that experience that we became close. She also told me what she remembered about the day she was taken from you. I was the only one she told it to. I don't know why she chose me though."

"She obviously trusted you," Mrs. Winchester said. She placed the bowl of ice cream and cup of tea in front of him before grabbing hers and sitting next to him.

"She didn't trust many people. She was very reserved, but she has her father's temper. Kind of a conundrum there. When she was comfortable around someone, you could tell. She'd give those big smiles and she'd actually laugh, not just one of those half-chuckle things people do. When she was angry, she'd become really silent and you could just see the 'I'm-going-to-kill-you' look on her face. When she was sad, she'd just become silent. Bryn wasn't very emotional. She liked to bottle things up. I guess she could handle it though. Then again, she could handle anything and everything."

"I fear she got the emotion thing from me. You'd think being a daughter of Aphrodite, I'd be very emotional and expressive about that sort of thing. Maybe it's because Hecate has always been one of those really mysterious goddesses and that's been passed down through all our generations, maybe it's because I'm English, but she got that from me. That trait skipped her brothers. If something's bothering them, they let it be known. All right, who's this girl who's causing you problems?"

"Uh, which one?" Luke asked genuinely.

Mrs. Winchester snorted at his honesty. "How many are there?"

"Hannah, Bryn, Silena, my mother, Penn- not you- and this girl named Hallie."

"You weren't joking. Okay, how about you just go in order. Start with Hannah."

"Hannah's the leader of the enemy army. She's daughter of Demeter and some other god no one can figure out. I think it has to do with something underground because that's the area she likes to be. She's been trying to kill us for about a year, two years now. Something like that. She succeeded in getting one of us… I guess that brings me on to Bryn. I've been dreaming about her and in the dreams, she's working for Hannah, but the Bryn I knew would never do that. I _know_ she wouldn't. And then she actually came and talked to me just before I woke up saying the one I've been dreaming about is not her, or at least not the one I know. Let's call her Bryn Two to avoid confusion here because I'm beginning to confuse myself. All right, so Bryn Two I believe also has an alias, one who is like a, uh…uh, frenemy. That alias is Penn. Now Penn, for some unknown reason, has convinced Lupa to fight on our side. But whenever Silena or Derek or I try to ask her about this, she tells us for our own good to stay the Hades away from her. Speaking of Silena, I guess you probably got this vibe that there used to be a thing between her and Derek and if you did, you were right. They just broke up a couple days ago because Derek was keeping quiet about being a child of Hades from us. I mean, I cut the guy some slack because not only did he just find out a few days ago, but he just lost his best friend too. It's a lot to handle. I guess it was to maddening for Silena though because she broke it off. He's still in love with her, and she's in love with him, just won't admit it. But their little argument has put me in the middle of them, and let's face it, I'm not the best mediator. Hallie is giving me a headache because she was another secret Derek was keeping from us but he had no idea who or what she was and didn't want to tell us until he figured that out. And then my mother, well, she's going to seriously ground me and Silena when we get back and told us not to question it if our father mysteriously disappeared when we got home because she's ticked at him for helping us get into the country, in a sense, illegally. Who knew hellhounds could be a good form of travelling?"

"A hellhound?"

"My dad's pet hellhound he got from the last war. Her name's Mrs. O'Leary. Last time we saw her, she was taking a nap in the park we landed in."

"Ah… I believe I should meet your parents one day. They seem like interesting people."

"That's one way of putting it. My parents were the savior's of Olympus a couple decades ago. Guess my sister and I inherited that job, although we haven't found out if we're saviors or destroyers yet."

"I think you'll follow in your parents' footsteps. You seem like a smart bunch of kids."

"I would hope so but we've made a lot of mistakes recently and-" Luke was cut off but his phone buzzing in his pocket. He glanced down at the screen. Answering it, he went, "Hey dad."

"Hey Luke, I know it's early in the morning, and I'm actually shocked you picked up, but I have a really important question."

"Shoot."

"Have you, Silena, or Derek been in Bryn's room recently?"

The question struck Luke as odd. "Uh, we haven't been home since we got back from the quest. Why?"

Percy sighed. "Then it looks like the Michaels' had a burglar."

* * *

**Long chapter which I hope you enjoyed! I should be studying for an economics test that's on Tuesday but I'm stressing so I finished writing this to de-stress :) Review please!**


	11. I Catch Myself on Fire

**Enjoy the chapter!  
**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires."  
****~ William Shakespeare, **_**Macbeth**_

* * *

Chapter 11: I Catch Myself on Fire

**Derek**

It was four in the morning when Derek was woken up by Luke shaking him. He grumbled an annoyed 'what'.

"Have you been in Bryn's room since we got back to camp?" Luke whispered.

"No. Why would I go in there? I don't want to go in there. Not when it's empty," he mumbled. His brain had no filter on it this early in the morning, but Derek realized he'd said too much. Opening his eyes, he saw Luke back away; Silena stood next to her brother, looking confused and tired. Mrs. Winchester and Mr. Drew stood alert in the doorway. Rubbing the back of his head, Luke said to someone on his cell phone, "Derek hasn't been in her room either… And Neville didn't bark at anything? That's weird… maybe he knew the intruder… stranger things have happened in our lives, dad. For all we know, it could be her… I'm coming home. I want to see if I can determine anything else they took. I'll call Mrs. O'Leary. I'll give her a ton of things to eat and drink so she can have enough energy to shadow-travel me back… yeah, love you too, Dad."

"What's happening?" Derek asked once his friend had hung up.

"Someone robbed Bryn's room. Only her room. Your parents discovered it when they came home a couple hours ago. They weren't greeted by Neville so they went searching for him and found him in Bryn's bed. Then they realized her closet door was open. They know for a fact they had her closet, bathroom, and bedroom doors had all shut when they left. So how Neville got in there is a question in itself because I don't think he knows how to open doors. But then they found pictures missing. You remember that bulletin board thing where she pinned up pictures, over half of them were gone. Picture frames were gone, her phone charger was gone, her iPod charger was gone, makeup bag was gone, and a ton of clothes. Whoever stole from her room knew what they wanted. Question is: who did it?"

"Maybe it was Bryn," Derek suggested. "You've said you've been dreaming about her right? And some of those dreams have been coming true. So maybe-"

"If it is Bryn, it's not the Bryn we know," Luke stated.

"What do you mean?"

His friend sighed. "She came to visit me in a dream, like her actual purpose was to see me. She said she's waiting to see what Underworld field she gets put into so she's been watching over us. She also said the Bryn I'm dreaming about is not her. It looks and speaks and acts like her, but it's not our Bryn. She warned me to stay away from her and Penn. I told her I'd try, but-"

"-But you want to know why Penn's helped us," Derek finished. "You promised her, but Silena and I didn't. We can find out what she's up to without you breaking your promise to Bryn."

Luke nodded. "All right. I told dad I was heading home. If you two want to stay here for a bit, that's fine, but I'm going back."

"I'll come with," Silena offered.

"Me too. Bryn was my sister. I could probably name a few things the person took too. Let me get packing."

Luke agreed and announced he was going to go call Mrs. O'Leary. He went downstairs, followed by Mrs. Winchester and Mr. Drew. Derek figured they were probably wanting to see a friendly hellhound because the idea itself was pretty ludicrous until you saw it for yourself.

It didn't take long for his bags to be packed. He went downstairs to find Mr. Drew pinned to the floor being licked to death by Mrs. O'Leary who had sprawled out on top of him. Thankfully Mr. Drew found the whole thing amusing and was laughing as he tried to get a breath of air.

"Off girl, come on," Luke ordered, giving the dog's collar a slight tug. The hellhound obeyed, giving her poor victim a chance to get up. Mr. Drew's face was covered in slobber. When Silena came down, the three demigods got onto Mrs. O'Leary's back. They thanked Mrs. Winchester and her fiancé gratefully for their hospitality and saying they'd keep in touch before getting on the hellhound to begin their quick journey back home. Derek always shut his eyes. He didn't know why; it just felt right. When he opened them, they were at the Jackson's home. No one was there when they entered, but that was fine. Luke threw down his stuff on the floor and bolted out the back door. Silena and Derek could do nothing but follow, although Silena made sure the door was locked before she chased after the boys. When they reached the Michaels' house, the Jackson's were waiting outside for them.

"Your parents are upstairs, Derek. They're trying to figure out if anything else was taken." He nodded and left the Jackson family so they could all talk in private. When he got up to Bryn's room, he halted in front of the door. He hadn't been in there since she died. He didn't want to go in there, not when she wouldn't be in there to greet him, or more often than not, throw a pillow at him for entering without knocking. A knot formed in his throat. He'd gone a week without crying. Derek knew Bryn would want him to be strong in this, but letting go of someone you'd grown up was easier said than done. Forcing the knot down, he pushed the door open. Mr. and Mrs. Michaels stood there in deep discussion. Upon seeing their son though, they pulled him into a hug.

"What were you thinking travelling to London without telling us?! You could've gotten killed!" his mother chastised. With a sigh, she added, "I'm just glad you're safe."

A few moments later, the Jacksons came into the room. Percy asked if the kids could figure out if anything else was taken. Hesitantly, they started sifting through her drawers and closet. It was Luke who discovered something.

"Two pieces of jewelry are missing," he declared, standing up.

"Do you know which ones?" Mrs. Michael's queried.

"Two necklaces I gave her. An infinity one I gave her for Christmas and an amethyst necklace I gave her for her birthday."

"I can explain the infinity one. She never took that one off. She was wearing it when… when Hannah killed her," Derek said. "So it's just the amethyst one that's missing."

Luke nodded. "Okay. Well it looks like they took everything important to her."

"We should alert Chiron. The burglar targeted Bryn's room specifically. She had stuff at camp too. The person may try there as well," Annabeth pointed out.

"I'll drive the kids back to camp," Percy said. "Annabeth, why don't you call Chiron and warn him about the possibility of a thief and that I'll be bringing the kids back to camp."

Mrs. Jackson nodded. Derek, Luke, and Silena followed her back to the Jackson's car. Since all three demigods had their backpacks, Annabeth simply drove straight to camp.

"How was Mrs. Winchester?" she queried, glancing at Derek and Silena in the rearview mirror before shooting a look at her son in the passenger seat.

"Just like Bryn," Luke said. "Looks, personality, everything."

"I thought it _was_ Bryn when I first saw her," Silena admitted. "Then her fiancé, Michael Drew, he's sweet. A little socially awkward but he says that's from being a son of Hephaestus."

"Did you tell her about your suspicions about Bryn?"

"Uh, sort of. I told I've been dreaming about her and that in the dreams she working for the enemy, that there's a girl named Penn who I swear is Bryn in disguise but I don't have proof. She didn't say much in reply though."

"It must've been hard, losing her daughter only to find out she's been alive this whole time but then finding out she really did die this time… supposedly. That's a strong woman right there. What about Brady and Bradley? Did you tell her about them?"

"No… didn't want to dump too much on her."

"Understandable." The group fell silent, and remained that way. Silena fell asleep, Derek closed his eyes. Luke must've thought both were asleep though because he whispered, "Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"I've been thinking… about college."

"What about it?"

"With everything going on, is college the most important thing? I mean we have a psycho on the loose, Bryn's doing gods know what, Penn's doing something that we can't figure out, then the _real_ Bryn is warning me to stay away from the people that I actually need to figure out, the Romans, well Antony in particular, are being jerks about joining forces when we have literally told them that unless we join forces, we won't survive this. Hell, it'll be a miracle if we survive this with their help because let's face it, if Bryn is on Hannah's side, she could kick all of our butts to Timbuktu and back, and-"

"Luke!" Annabeth interrupted. "Calm down. Yes, you have a lot on your plate, but it's not healthy for you to focus on it twenty-four-seven. Not all of the answers you're seeking will come to you no matter how much you try to find out until the person that holds the answer is ready to tell you. For example, in the case of Penn, she doesn't want you near her for a reason. I'm pretty sure you won't find out that reason until she's willing to let it be known. Do you understand me? And you shouldn't have to stop your life and dreams and aspirations because some witch named Hannah is trying to take over the world. Your father and I still went to high school when Kronos was plotting world domination. We still hung out, albeit not on actual dates although I'm pretty sure Sally would've wanted them to be at that point in time. Maybe you and Silena should go see her and Paul soon? You both need a break. Bring Derek too. I haven't missed the dark circles under his eyes."

"That might be from the stress Silena's causing him."

"What's going on between them?"

"They may have… broken up."

"What? Why?"

"Silena did it. It's not that he was keeping secrets, he just wasn't telling us things right then and there and I understood his explanation about why. I get it. I'd do the same thing. But Silena saw it differently and called it off."

"She's getting that from me."

"You did it to dad?"

"No, but he may've led me to believe he died when he blew up Mt. St. Helens and then appeared at his funeral and even though we weren't dating, I was beyond pissed at him. I would barely speak to him."

"Is that when you were jealous of Rachel?"

"I was not jealous of her!" Annabeth protested in a rather squeaky voice. When Luke snorted, she admitted indignantly, "Fine, so I was a little jealous. It's in the past now though and she's a close friend of mine. But back to college. Luke, you can do whatever you want, but don't stop living your life. Hannah already takes up a majority of your time. Don't let her take any more from you."

Luke was silent before, "Okay."

* * *

**Silena**

The sun was setting in the horizon, but enough sunlight remained for Silena to look at the surroundings and realize she was in New York. She didn't exactly know where. It was unfamiliar. However, it didn't look like the richest, or safest area to be in. In one corner, a bunch of little kids, not old enough to be in school yet, played with a small football. Above them on a balcony sat a man reading a newspaper. On the balcony over, a woman was hanging clothes out to dry. A few seconds later, teenagers, high school students it looked like, started rounding corners, entering buildings, calling out hellos to each other, clapping each other on the back and other things.

One kid caught Silena's attention though. He was tall, buff, dark-skinned, wore torn jeans, a gray hoodie, and had headphones on. The other kids kept their distance from him, shying away when he came near. There was a group of six teens behind him. By the look in their eyes, Silena knew they were up to no good. Sure enough, they corned the poor teen into an alleyway. No one went to help him.

"Hey Ty," the group leader greeted.

"What do you want Victor?" Ty groaned.

"I want my daily payment. How much money do you have on you?"

"None for you. This money is for my mom."

"No, that money is for me now. Hand it over, brother."

"You're not my brother."

"No, I'm not. Where is your little brother? Oh, that's right. He's not here. He's in the cemetery." Ty lunged at Victor, going for his neck. The latter stepped out of the way, cackling. "You'd think after so many times, he would figure out that no matter how many times he fights us, he will _never_ win. Get 'em boys."

It turned into a full out brawl. It was one on seven. The seven were wimpy but they had numbers. Ty had strength but he was by himself. He was going to get tired soon too. About fifteen seconds into the fight, activity ceased, each person stopping and staring at a black Lamborghini pulling up to the curb. A blonde girl stepped out, and Silena recognized Bryn immediately. She looked, simply put, like a badass. With dark jeans, black boots, a white tank top, a black leather jacket, and aviator sunglasses, she was an impressive sight to behold.

"What's going on here boys?" She queried, slowly, leisurely stepping towards them.

"Stay out of this lady," Victor called. "We wouldn't want to ruin that pretty face of yours."

"This _pretty_ face has fought and won against much bigger people than you."

One of Victor's companions stepped in front of her. "You have no business here."

"Actually I do. See, I'm here to talk to Ty. Hey there Ty," Bryn said sweetly. He gave her a small smile.

"Well if you want him, you're going to have to go through us," Victor pointed out.

Bryn shrugged. "Okay, show me what you got."

"Jack, at her," the leader ordered. The biggest guy in the group dropped Ty to the ground and stalked towards Bryn. He had to be at least a foot and a half taller than her. She just stared at him calmly. He tried to grab her but she spun around him, kicking in the back of the knee. Jack went down. She grabbed his wrists, putting them behind his back, and pushed him onto the ground, her knee digging into his back. He grunted and twisted but it was to no avail.

"Who's next?" She questioned innocently.

"How did you- never mind. Kirk, go."

A second guy, acting more hesitant, approached her. Kirk threw a punch at her. Bryn dodged it, grabbed his arm, got behind him, and flipped him over her shoulder. He landed with a grunt of pain.

Victor growled. "Looks like I have to do this myself. Boys, let's get her."

Ty tackled one of the guys to the ground while the three remaining ones lunged at Bryn. In a split second, the ones going for her were flying back, only stopping when they crashed into a brick wall. Their shirts were smoking, the hair on their arms singed off. They stared at her as if she'd grown a third arm but got back up, infuriated. Ty tripped one of them, sending the guy sprawling unflatteringly onto the ground while at the same time falling on the guy in front of him. Bryn met the remaining guy charge for charge, leaping up at the last seconds, wrapping her thighs around his neck, flipping herself, and him, back. She landed gracefully in a crouched position. Her victim lay motionless on the ground.

"What the-" Victor began.

"You, the one fighting Ty, back away. _Now_," Bryn commanded. She went to stand next to Ty who stared at her with a fascinated wariness as his competitor backed away with his hands in the air. "Let me be clear: if I ever hear of or see you bullying Ty or anyone else again, I'm going to do a lot more than blast you back with a little lightning."

"What kind of witch are you?" Victor demanded.

"Not a witch, just a demigod. Ty and I will be taking our leave now. Behave and have a nice day." Bryn turned on her heel and began walking back to her car. Ty snatched up his backpack before jogging up to her side.

"How did you learn to fight like that?" He asked.

"I've been training my whole life."

"Who are you? And what do you want with me?"

"My name is Bryn Winchester. I came to talk to you and your mother? Father?"

"Mother," he filled in.

"I'm here to talk to you and your mother about your father. But let's wait until we get you back to your house. It'll be easier to explain where we are less likely to be overheard. Where do you live? I'll drive us over there," she offered.

"I just live a block over from here. No need to drive."

Bryn smiled and motioned for him to lead the way. "How old are you Ty?"

"Seventeen. You?"

"Eighteen, so not much older than you," Bryn said.

"You don't look eighteen. You look older."

"So I've heard. Many times actually. Is this where you live?" She looked up at a red brick building. Some of the windows were broken, others were still intact. The steps leading up to the door looked rickety and worn. Silena was amazed they didn't break when the two people walked up them.

"Yes, ma'am," Ty replied, opening the door for her. She entered. A few kids stared at her as she walked by, probably wondering who she was and where she was from. Bryn smiled sweetly at them. "I apologize for the state of the place. My mom and I try our best but it was never that great of a place to begin with."

"I'm sure it's lovely," Bryn said sincerely.

"So you said you were here to talk about my father?"

"Yes."

"Is it… bad news?"

"Depends on your definition. Where I come from, people handle this news very differently."

"Did you get the news yourself once?"

She nodded. "When I was three. I know what it's like to have an absent father. I mean, my mother had this friend that was practically a father to me but my real one, I never met him until I was… oh, fourteen or fifteen and that was only because I was mentioned in some bloody prophecy."

"Prophecy?"

"Story for another time. My point is I know what you've been through, at least in some ways."

"Do you have a family back where you live?"

"I had one, lost it to some monsters. I had a second but that one I lost due to my own doing."

"I'm sorry."

"Thank you. But enough of my woes, where's your mum? I can't wait to meet her!" Bryn said cheerfully.

Silena opened her eyes. She was in the Poseidon cabin. When did that happen? How did she get here? Last thing she remembered was her mother asking about Mrs. Winchester. Shaking her head, Silena sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"Hello?" she called out.

Luke and Derek's upside down heads dropped down from the top bunk simultaneously. "Hey."

"What time is it?"

"Noon. Chiron thought it'd be good if the three of us caught up on some sleep seeing as how we were up for a while," Luke explained.

"Ah. Uh, what are you two doing?"

"College crap. Well, we were," Derek said. "We were both trying to figure some of this stuff out because they do _not_ make it clear whatsoever but then we got sick of it and went on to researching random things."

"Surprisingly there's nothing serious on raising armies from the dead. Any time we search 'skeleton soldier' it brings up Tumblr and this thing called the 'Skeleton War.' Don't ask, we don't know what it is either," Luke mused.

"Tumblr is a dangerous place," the son of Hades added.

"All right you two," Silena said, getting up. "I'll leave you up to your weird antics. I'm going to go get food. I'm starving. You want anything?"

"Bacon," the boys said simultaneously. Silena nodded, getting up, deciding not to question their sudden close friendship. They'd always had each other's back, but this was new. She walked out of the cabin, promptly bumping into a girl three heads shorter than her.

"Oh I'm so sorry!" Silena apologized.

"You're okay!" the girl chirped. "You probably didn't see me. It happens all the time, don't worry."

"What's your name? I haven't seen you around here before."

"Thera. I came a few days ago."

"Oh! I remember you! You were the girl who was being chased by monsters. Did… did they ever find your friend?"

"No… but she's alive. I know it. She messaged me saying she was going home, wherever that is. She's sort of nomadic. She came across me in one of her travels."

"How does she know about camp?"

"She attended it but left at some point. I'm not entirely sure when. Who knows, maybe you weren't here when she was. What's your name?"

"I'm Silena Jackson."

"I've heard about you! You're a granddaughter of Poseidon and Athena right?"

"Yeah, that's me. My brother too. He's with our friend Derek right now. They're busy with college stuff. I'm going to get food for me and them."

"May I join you? It's just you're the nicest person I've met here. You're not afraid of me. I was claimed by Eris, who is apparently the goddess of-"

"Discord. So your mother causes a few things. The campers shouldn't be afraid of you for that. And yes, you're welcome to join me. Why don't you tell me about yourself along the way?"

Thera beamed.

* * *

**Luke**

The two boys waited for two minutes after Silena left before hopping off the bed onto the floor, rubbing their hands together.

"Okay, so you said Hallie had her hands aflame?" Luke queried.

"Yeah, she just like… thrust her hand out and it caught on fire," Derek replied.

"Do it."

"What if I can't stop it? What if I burn myself?"

"Dude. You're in the presence of a son of Poseidon. In Poseidon's cabin. There is a small fountain behind you I can dunk you in if that happens. Trust me. You're fine." The son of Hades gave the grandson of Poseidon a dubious glance. "Stop looking at me like I'm an idiot and light your hands on fire before Silena comes back. And try not to set my cabin on fire in the process."

"Thanks for the encouragement."

"Any time."

Derek rolled his eyes before shaking his hands in preparation. He declared, "All right, here goes!"

He threw his hand down.

Nothing.

"Are you thinking about lighting your hand on fire?" Luke asked.

"No. I'm thinking about lollipops and unicorns. _Yes I'm thinking of setting my hand on fire_," Derek retorted.

"Calm yourself McFeisty Pants, I was just checking. Do it again."

"McFeisty Pants?"

"I'm glad you can hear. Now go." Groaning, Derek did as he was told. He threw his hand down for a second time. Like before, nothing happened. Frustrated, he let out an aggravated yell. Luke sat down on Silena's bed and banged his head on the walls, hoping that somehow, it'd give him some ideas. Closing his eyes, he forced his brain to think. Maybe Derek didn't actually have the power? Because who had heard of a Hades kid controlling fire? But then apparently in the dream Bryn had told Hallie it was hell fire. What was the difference between hell fire and regular fire? So maybe Derek did have the power and he just wasn't doing the right steps to get his hand to light up?

Luke couldn't really think of rational reasons because Derek going 'stupid… how in Hades name did she do this! How… on earth… is it possible?! _Light up you freaking thing_!' was very distracting.

"Maybe you're trying too hard," Luke interrupted his friend's rant, getting back up. "Try being calm while you think about setting your hand on fire."

"How can I be calm when I am literally trying to set myself on fire?"

"Can you be a little bit more optimistic? Come on, what's it going to hurt you to try?" Derek scowled but conceded. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Silence was all that could be heard in the cabin for what seemed like hours when in reality, Luke knew it was only one or two minutes tops. A small 'whoosh' made him open his eyes.

"Uh, Derek?" Luke said.

"Shush. I'm concentrating."

"I think you've concentrated enough. Look down." Derek opened his eyes, lifting his hand in front of his face. A small fire flickered in the palm of his hand, slowly spreading.

"I did it!" Derek exclaimed in shock.

"Yeah man, you did! Woo!" The two boys celebrated for a few seconds before the boy on fire said, "Uh, how- how do I stop it?"

"I thought you would know?"

"How am I supposed to know?! I just learned how to get it to turn on or whatever!" Derek shook his hand, trying to put out the flames. He came too close to Luke's shirt though and the fire jumped onto the son of Poseidon.

"Ah!" Luke yelled, batting away at the fire.

"AH!" Derek shouted in response as his creation engulfed his hand. The two sequentially screamed and hopped around, Luke simply from trying to avoid Derek's flaming hand from touching him again. Water being splashed onto Derek interrupted their idiotic dance. Silena stood in the doorway with food, staring at them.

"You are both buffoons," she remarked. "So, how long have you known you could do that?"

"Just now, I swear. I had a dream about Hallie doing it so I wanted to see if I could and now I know I can, I just can't… shut it off. I'm gonna work on that though. I don't plan on burning anyone or anything down."

"Good to know," Luke commented. Derek shuffled on his feet. There was an awkward pause between the three demigods when finally the oldest Jackson said, "Okay, you two lovebirds have some talking to do and there's no way I'm going to get involved in it. Don't know much about romance anyways. Silena, no running away from it. Derek, no shadow-travelling out of it."

Luke grabbed a sandwich from Silena, saluting them as he walked backwards out of the cabin, shutting the door after himself.

* * *

**Derek**

An uncomfortable silence fell over the cabin as Silena walked over to her bed, placing the snacks down. Derek remained where he was, trying to think of something to say, something that wouldn't set her off on him again.

"So," Silena began, "How'd you figure out that you had this superpower?"

"I dreamt it last night. I went and told Luke when he woke up. I kind of crashed here for the night. After carrying you over here from the car, I sort of just plopped onto the bed and fell asleep. Hope Poseidon didn't mind…"

"Why'd you just tell Luke about the power?"

"It's not exactly like you were all that accepting of my newfound powers," he pointed out. "I thought I had a better shot with Luke helping me than you."

"I'm not saying it _had_ to be me _or_ him, it could've been both of us. Besides, this time's different. You just found out about it. Those other secrets you'd been keeping from us for a while."

"I wanted to figure out who Hallie was and how to control the 'raising-the-army-from-the-dead' thing before I told you two. You know what it's like to discover you have these incredible powers that you have no idea what to do with, how to use them, or to what extent they go. But you had your brother to help you figure this out. You could tell people your power. I can't. For some reason I know I have to keep my powers a secret from everyone. There's a reason Hades kept me from knowing I was his son up until now. I want to make sure I can control these powers so if you and Luke and I are ever trapped underground again, I can get us out of there. If I had known about this before… before we went on that quest for Luke, then maybe Bryn-"

"-Would still be here," Silena finished.

"Yeah. I'm useful now. I'm not saying I wasn't before, but everything I did, you or Luke or Bryn easily could've done it as well. But now I can _do_ things that can help us and-"

"You've always helped us."

"How?! I don't understand how!"

"Power doesn't always mean the person who has the coolest abilities, whether that's hydrokinesis or electrokinesis or raising armies from the dead. Sometimes it's the ability to merely be there and be an anchor. You've always thought Bryn was the rock of the group, and at times, I thought that too. Then I realized it was you. _You_ are the one whose approval we want. I could've cared less if Bryn approved of my actions or not, at least after the first quest. Luke always wanted to impress her. You never had to. Luke's not our rock. I'm sorry, I love my brother, but he's not the most… stable, level-headed person."

"Did you just call your brother insane?"

"Possibly. Now, I'm not the rock because the same thing went for Bryn with me, and same with Luke. Neither wanted to impress me. I don't… know about you. But _you_, none of us, not even Bryn, has ever been as level-headed as you. She, Luke, and I all act so impulsively. You act on rationality. When we got separated from Bryn, it was _you_ who told us we had to keep moving. If we hadn't, the gods only know what would've happened to us. You have _always_ been useful so stop thinking you're not, do you understand me?" Silena demanded.

"Yes."

"Good."

"Silena, I know I ticked you off keeping those secrets from you but was it really that bad that you thought breaking up with me was the best way to go?" Derek asked softly. "Because that doesn't seem like you. There's something deeper than that going on."

Silena bit her lip. "We're both children of the Big Three. Our parents are fine if we're friends, but you saw their reaction to Bryn and Luke liking each other. We're not supposed to date."

"Silena, we dated for a year and neither Poseidon nor Hades ever gave us any hard times about it."

"Well for all we know Poseidon doesn't know about what you can do!"

"If that be the case then I would be glad to show him so we could find out."

"No! What if he says no?! We can't! It was hard enough breaking up with you once. I don't want to have to go through it again!"

"You know, it's always better to ask for forgiveness rather than permission," Derek pointed out, slowly walking up to her.

"What are you suggesting?"

"I'm suggesting we say screw the gods and make our own path. If they don't like it, then too bad for them. On the other hand, if you really don't want to get back to together, then I understand, but at least let me know where I stand with you so we're not in some weird limbo like we've been for the past week or so."

Silena walked up to Derek and kissed him. Pulling away, she grinned and said, "Then I say screw the gods."

* * *

**So much in this chapter! I couldn't stop writing… review please :)**


	12. I Smell Like A Dog

**GUYS I WENT AND SAW MOCKINGJAY AND IT WAS INCREDIBLE AND NOW I CAN'T STOP SINGING 'THE HANGING TREE'**

**Okay, rant over. Enjoy the chapter :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
"A I'm not to be played with  
Because it could get dangerous  
See these people I ride with  
This moment, we own it."  
~ _We Own It_ by 2Chainz and Wiz Khalifa**

* * *

Chapter 12: I Smell Like A Dog

**Four months later…**

**Luke**

_The first thought that crossed Luke's mind was that the room he was currently in was not his college dorm. This place was some sort of fancy living room that he'd seen before. Luke couldn't quite place why until Hannah strutted into the room. Ryan followed her._

"_Ryan, did she respond to your message?" Hannah asked._

"_If by respond, you mean telling me to go to Tartarus, then yes, she did," he responded._

"_Too bad you didn't listen." Bryn strode into view. Brady, Bradley, and Hallie were all there._

"_What are they doing here?" Hannah demanded._

"_They are my generals. They sit and listen, nothing else. Besides, while I may work for you does not mean I trust your workers not to attack me. Many here believe I'll turn on you at any moment. I'd prefer to have some protection."_

"_Do they have reason to?" Ryan prodded, plopping down into a chair._

"_The only treason I'll be committing anytime soon is making your body a sheath for my sword if you keep questioning me. Now let us begin with the meeting. I have many preparations to finish."_

_Ryan glared at her but said nothing. Hannah filled in the silence. "Are you going to introduce us to your generals?"_

"_These are my brothers, Bradley and Brady, sons of Zeus, grandsons of Aphrodite, great-grandsons of Hecate, and great-great grandsons of Apollo," Bryn pointed to her brother's respectively. She turned to the brunette. "This is Hallie, daughter of Hades."_

"_See, this is why we'll win this war. Because unlike Kronos and Gaea, we have demigods of the Big Three on our side. Be seated. Let's begin this meeting. It'll be short because I have some more important things to do but I want updates. Ryan, you begin."_

"_Fifty new demigod recruits just in the past week, a few of them from Camp Half-Blood and a few from Camp Jupiter. They're already in training."_

"_Very good. How long until they're ready to attack?"_

"_About three weeks. They'll be ready. Have you decided which route you would like us to take? It will make planning our attack strategy better."_

"_Not yet, but be patient. This must be precise and it will be calculated. And it will only need a few of your best soldiers. Understood?"_

"_Not a force?" Ryan whined._

"_No," Hannah said firmly. "Your chosen soldiers will need to be ready whenever I say they must fight. It could be in three weeks, it could be in three months. I have yet to decide but I have people watching them. Now, onto other things. Bryn, what news from camp?"_

"_Honestly there's not much. Obviously they're training for the upcoming war. Luke and Derek have gone off to college and Silena is in her senior year of high school," Bryn informed._

"_What college?"_

"_University of Texas."_

"_When are they coming home?"_

"_In a week. They have their final football game before the bowl games."_

_Hannah smiled. "When is the bowl game they are attending? And where is it?"_

"_I don't know when, but I know it's in San Francisco," Bryn replied. Luke could tell she didn't entirely trust Hannah's reason for wanting to know where his bowl game was._

"_They'll be next to the Romans. Do you think he and Derek will make a side trip to try and convince the Romans to join their side?"_

"_No. The first time I was with Derek in Camp Jupiter, we sort of destroyed the place and made a fool of the praetor Antony. According to a source in the camp, the last time Luke, Silena, and Derek were there, Luke punched Antony. Cora is in favor of joining the Greeks, but Antony's pride is wounded which is preventing him from wanting to join. There are still those in the Roman camp that distrust the Greeks. You could use that to your advantage."_

"_I could… how are you coming along Bryn?"_

"_Very well. Our mission is almost complete. We'll be ready for the time the war comes." Luke couldn't help but wonder what this _plan _was. If Bryn had created it, the gods know how bad it was going to end for the side opposing her, a.k.a. Luke's side. "In fact, speaking of the mission, we should be getting back. There's still a vast amount of work that still needs to be prepared and done and if you want us to be ready for the warl we need all the time we can have."_

"_Yes, be on your way. I want to discuss some private matters with Ryan anyways. We'll talk soon." Hannah waved her hand and Bryn, Brady, Bradley, and Hallie disappeared. Luke was transported to a room much less decorated than Hannah's but still nicely furnished. The walls were purple with white and gold accents. To Luke, it seemed very Greek but if Bryn was fighting against them, why have it look like that?_

"_How'd it go?" A boy asked. He'd been lounging on the couch underneath the window. He was tanned and had short dark-hair._

"_Pretty sure that answer goes without saying. She looks pissed," another boy said. He was much bigger, and much taller than the other. He was sitting in a chair opposite the first._

"_Ryan always pisses me off. She just wanted an update on us and what not. Nothing major, nothing prying. However, Scott, I want you to get in contact with our little spy and find out when the bowl game is that Luke and Derek are playing in. No questions for now, just do it. Ty, contact the spy at the Roman camp. Find out what's going on there and see if we need to do anything to help the situation there."_

"_Yes, ma'am," Scott and Ty said simultaneously._

_Bryn smiled. "Boys, how many times do I have to tell you that you do not have to call me 'ma'am'? It feels weird when I'm only a couple years older than you."_

"_Sorry," they said._

"_Nothing to be sorry for. Go, I'll talk to you soon." When Ty and Scott had left, Bryn turned to her brothers and Hallie. "What do you think?"_

"_About?" one of the twins queried._

"_About what Hannah is planning against the Three Musketeers?"_

"_I think Hannah believes that they're all broken, or at least Luke is and let's face it, he's the one she needs to worry about of that group. He's unpredictable and that's scary to a person planning for world domination. I think she thinks that because of your death Bryn, he's too depressed to fight," Hallie said._

"_If she truly thinks that, she's a fool," Bryn replied._

"_Why do you say that?" A twin inquired._

"_Derek, Silena, and Luke, they're all upset, there's no doubt about that. Derek has his new powers, something he's keeping a secret from everyone else. The only people who know that I know of are the four of us, Luke, Silena, and our informant. He'll be so preoccupied with learning those that it's giving him something else to think about other than me. Silena is strong. She's upset but she'll just keep calm and carry on. Luke may be broken, but whether he is or not, I know my _death_ is only adding more fuel to his fire. He's angry and he's going to be more dangerous than ever before."_

"_What are we going to do?" the other twin questioned._

"_Stay out of his way as often as possible."_

"_With what you have planned, that's going to be pretty impossible."_

"_That's why I said 'as often as possible.' Let me change out of these clothes and then let's go train, okay?"_

_The three demigods nodded and left. Bryn sank down in her chair once they were gone. She fiddled with her infinity necklace, the one Luke had given her. Why had dream-Bryn warned him about real-life-Bryn? She seemed like the same one he knew before she 'died'._

_Luke snapped out of his thoughts when Bryn jerked her hand away from her necklace. Her hand was sparking. She shook it roughly, a panicked confusion etched on her face. Her chest rose rapidly._

"_What the…" she breathed. Shaking her head, she murmured, "Calm down Bryn… calm down… getting upset will change nothing."_

_Her hand stopped sparking as she braced herself against the desk, hanging her head. Taking a deep breath, she left the office, leaving Luke alone and confused._

* * *

Luke opened his eyes. He wasn't alone now. He was still in the bus heading to the bowl game in San Francisco. Derek was sitting next to him attempting to do homework, emphasis on 'attempting.'

"So," Derek began quietly. "What's going on with Bryn now?"

Luke groaned and pushed himself up from his slumped position. "How'd you know?"

"You talk in your sleep. Don't worry, no one else heard you. So what happened this time?"

"Bryn went to talk to Hannah with the twins and Hallie. It must've been a few weeks ago though because Hannah's interested in us and the bowl game and they talked about how it was a few weeks away. We need to be on watch. And then Bryn, it was almost like she was having issues controlling her power. I don't know what would cause that though. Stress?"

"Possibly, but what would stress Bryn out so much that she would start losing control over her powers? The most I've ever seen Bryn stressed was the day you went missing. She went berserk. But even then she didn't lose control."

"Weird. We'll figure it out though. In the meantime, I suggest you put your homework away. We're at the hotel." Derek looked out the window to the thirty-nine story hotel.

The football team disembarked off the bus. They entered the hotel lobby which was strangely empty. Luke would've thought that a hotel in such a busy part of San Francisco would be more… packed with people. But he wasn't complaining because there was more room to stand. He'd been sitting for far too long. Not an easy thing to do for a demigod. The coaches went and checked everyone in. The rooms could only fit two people so Derek and Luke had managed to get a room together. They got their key and went to their room. It was small but for the two boys and having experienced the quests they'd been on, this place was luxurious. The two of them plopped on their bed.

"When are Silena and our parents getting here?" Derek queried, stretching.

"Around dinner time. They apparently had a long wait for something. I don't know what. We're going out to dinner with them though. We're driving to Sausalito. Apparently there's some restaurant there that mom really wants to eat at. Who knows? All I know is that I'm hungry and we still have an hour to wait before they're here so, I'm going to sleep it off."

"Sounds like a plan. I'm going to try and finish that homework. That class is killing me…" Derek muttered. Luke made an agreeing noise but was asleep a few seconds later. When he awoke, it was to someone knocking on his door. Luke rolled off his bed. Derek had face-planted into his homework, fast asleep. Opening the door, the Jacksons and the Michaels stood there, but there was also another family, a familiar one.

"Mrs. Winchester! Mr. Drew!" Luke exclaimed in shock. "What are you doing here?"

"We thought we might come see you three again," Mrs. Winchester said, smiling at him. He gave her a hug and shook Mr. Drew's hand. Silena gave her brother a hug before walking over to wake Derek. He jumped when she touched him. She laughed and remarked, "I didn't know you drooled in your sleep."

He glared at her but got up, giving her a kiss. When he saw the surprise guests, he greeted them enthusiastically. After a few minutes of conversing, the group left to go to dinner. It was surprisingly uneventful and went smoothly. They talked school, football, camp, war, gave each other some trivia, exchanged stories, and caught up with each other.

"I guess we should start heading back," Mrs. Jackson said. "You boys have an early practice tomorrow, don't you?"

"Don't remind us," Derek laughed, standing up. The group went outside into the chilly night air, causing Derek to comment, "Temperature dropped."

"Drastically. Let's get back to the hotel. Luke, Silena, Derek, if it's too crowded in your parents' car, you're welcome to ride in ours. We're all going to the same place," Mrs. Winchester offered.

"I'll go," Luke said. Silena and Derek joined in. The Jacksons and Michaels got in Percy's car. The three teenagers got in with Mrs. Winchester and Mr. Drew.

"So, what did you want to talk to us about?" Silena asked once she shut the door.

"It's about Brady and Bradley," Mrs. Winchester said.

"What about them?" Derek questioned.

"They came and visited us. For a couple days, but they wouldn't stay at our house. They said they were staying in a hotel. They wouldn't say with whom either. Then it dawned on me that they might not be fighting for you guys, but I know they wouldn't fight with the wrong side unless someone had extreme persuasive abilities, and I don't necessarily mean Charmspeaking. The only reason it makes sense that they would join that twit, Hannah, is because someone they love is working for her. The only person I can think of is Bryn. Do you know anything about this?"

Luke, Silena, and Derek all remained silent. They felt bad, knowing they should've said something sooner. It was Silena who spoke up. "We know they're working with her. We didn't want to say anything to you at first, especially because we just dropped the massive bomb on you that Bryn had really been alive this entire time and we didn't want you worrying about whatever Brady and Bradley have gotten themselves in until we figured out what exactly they were doing. We're so sorry. We should've told you…"

"No, I understand. I'm going to work on finding out myself while you three figure out how to win this war. And when I do-" Mrs. Winchester never finished her sentence. Something rammed the back of the car, sending it spinning out of control, flipping over multiple times. Luke protected his head from the flying shards of glass but he felt some cutting his face. When the car came to a stop, upside down, Luke groaned, "Everyone okay?"

"I-I'm okay," Silena stammered. "Derek?"

"I'm alive. Somehow. Mrs. Winchester? Mr. Drew?"

No answer.

"We need to get out of here," Luke said, unbuckling his seatbelt. He braced himself from falling down with his hands on the roof of the car, his hands being stabbed by glass shards. He grunted but forced himself to move. As he was shifting himself out of the broken window, arms grabbed hold of him. Luke started to freak out until he heard his mother's voice, telling him to stay calm while they got them out of there. Percy was getting an unconscious Mrs. Winchester out while the Michaels helped Derek and Silena. Once Luke was out, he tried helping his mom get Mr. Drew out from the mangled passenger's side of the car. He had blood trickling down the side of his forehead. They carefully pulled him out. Annabeth pulled out some nectar and forced some into his and Mrs. Winchester's mouths. Within moments, the two regained consciousness.

"What happened?" Mrs. Winchester murmured.

"We got rammed by something. Speaking of-" Silena stopped speaking, looking around. "Uh, guys?"

Luke glanced around, quickly standing up. Four hummers encircled them, two people in each accompanied by four monsters of an assorted variety, mainly _dracanae_, _Telekhines_, and _Laistrygonians_. Twenty-four enemies in total. And standing on one of the Hummers was Ryan. He wore a smug expression on his face which made Luke want to punch it right off.

"It's sad how easy it was to capture you three," Ryan said, jumping down onto the ground. He started walking over to the injured group of demigods. Luke stood up to block him.

"What do you want us for?"

"_I _don't want you. Hannah does. I'm just getting you for her. Now, if you come quietly and without a fight, I'll let your parents live and Bryn's. Don't want to make her brothers orphans, do you? They hate you enough as it is." Luke bit his tongue. He wasn't going to ask why. "The boy that led to their sister's death. The contempt they have for you."

"That wasn't Luke's fault," Silena sneered. "Bryn knew what she was doing. She knew she wasn't coming back. But as I recall, you had to do with her death, so I'm going to assume her brothers hate you too." Ryan glared at her. Luke wanted to hug his sister at that moment. "Why does Hannah want us?"

"I don't know. I do as she bids, and, if you don't do as I bid, then we're going to kill Mr. Drew over there," Ryan warned. "Janine, show them how serious we are."

A girl rose with a bow and arrow. Before anyone could react, she sent an arrow into Mr. Drew's shoulder. It wasn't fatal, but it would cause a lot of pain.

"Fine, we'll go with you," Luke said.

"Just leave them out of this," Derek added. He, Luke, and Silena started walking over to Ryan, much to the protests of their parents. Just as the three of them reached him, he was gone, replaced by a motorcycle. The motorcyclist had literally slammed into Ryan, sending him sprawling onto the ground a good ten feet away. He rolled over, amazingly conscious but completely dazed.

Five more motorcyclists appeared, skidding to a stop. They were all dressed the same. Black boots, black jeans, black shirts, black leather jackets, and black helmets with visors blocking their eyes. The remaining bikers got off their rides, pulling out swords, shields, and arrows. The leader pulled out their sword and charged the closest monster.

The battle was on.

"_Voi̱thí̱ste ton_!" The leader ordered in a high-pitched voice. _Help him_.

Two of the fighters went sliding to a stop next to Mr. Drew who was starting to regain consciousness. They ripped off their gloves and hovered them over his injured head. Light emanated from them. So those two were healers. They must've been sons of Apollo, or they at least had Apollo blood in them.

A short yelp erupted from Luke's right. He whipped his head around to see Silena tackled to the ground by a _dracanae_. He took out _Cyclone_ and charged. A _Laistrygonian _leapt in his way but Luke catapulted himself over it and stabbed it in the back without looking. The monster gave a roar of rage before disappearing in cloud of sulfur. Silena managed to kick herself away and pull out _Seismos_ and slashed at the snake lady, effectively getting rid of it. She scampered next to her brother. They went back to back. Derek joined them, bow armed.

"So, what's our plan of attack?" Derek asked, firing an arrow into the heart of a _Telekhine_.

"You two hold them off here. I'm going to break through and help out the leader. She's all by herself and while she's handling herself quite well, backup won't hurt," Luke said, already charging through the monster blockade. Silena shouted at him to be careful. He slid under the club of a _Laistrygonian_, chopping of its leg with his sword. Standing backup, he saw his parents and Derek's defending Mrs. Winchester and Mr. Drew who were pretty much out of commission in this fight. Two of the mystery fighters were with them, effectively kicking butt. Three of the other fighters were luring some of the monsters away from their targets. Then the leader was backed up against a hummer by three demigods, one of them being Ryan. Luke didn't want to kill anyone, he couldn't bring himself to do it, but he wasn't going to let them hurt this leader, especially since she was helping him out and probably saving not only his life, but Silena and Derek's as well. Using the flat of his blade, he struck the closest demigod in the helmet, knocking them down and out to the ground. Ryan turned on him and swung his sword at Luke's head.

"Whoa!" Luke exclaimed, leaning so far back he fell over. Ryan's sword sliced through the air, heading straight towards Luke's face. He rolled to the side, hearing the metal clang against the asphalt next to his ear.

"Hey!" Someone shouted. Ryan turned around. Luke watched as the leader leapt off the hood of the Hummer, slammed into Ryan's neck with her thighs, bent back, twisting so that she could bring him down; pretty much she turned into Natasha Romanoff for a brief moment, but it was awesome nonetheless. Ryan went down while the leader landed gracefully on her hands and feet, like a cat. She kicked the downed enemy in the head, knocking him out.

"_Párte tous éxo̱ apó edó̱!_" The leader barked. It was then that it really hit Luke that it was a girl. Immediately he thought it must be Penn or Bryn, more likely the former because Bryn seemed only to show herself as Penn to their group.

"No, no, no, we're not getting out of here unless you're coming with us," Luke remarked, standing up. "You need to explain why you keep helping us… Penn."

Her head turned towards him, telling him he'd guessed right. "_You_ do not tell _me_ what to do after _I _have just saved _your _life," she said, putting emphasis on the pronouns. When she tried to walk away, he grabbed her arm. Penn yanked it out of his grasp, kicking his feet from underneath him. He landed on his back but before he could get up, he felt his arms being pinned to the ground, a knee digging into his chest.

"Listen to me. When I or my comrades come to stop you from being kidnapped or from being killed, you let us do our thing and then let us go on our way. You do not follow us, you do not try to find us after."

"Why? What's so bad about me seeing you?"

"You are not ready to know."

"In your eyes, will I ever be?"

Penn stayed silent for a couple seconds before, "No, not while I am alive. After that, maybe you will find out."

"What if I die before you?"

"You are not going to do that," she said firmly. Luke bit his tongue. Except for Hannah and Bryn, no one else knew about his curse. He wasn't about to let someone else know, someone who could easily tell Silena and Derek and his parents, the very people he didn't want to find out about his curse.

"You know, if you didn't keep saving my life, we wouldn't be having this issue," Luke pointed out.

"I need you alive. Now, I am going to get up and I am going to have three of my people take you and your people back to your hotel. Meanwhile, I am going to make sure these buffoons do not follow you. When I get up, you will stay where you are until one of my people come and get you," she said, adding, "Stay."

"I'm not a dog," he snapped.

"Not physically, although after all this fighting you might smell like one." Penn got up. Luke stayed in his spot, glaring at her. One of the other mystery people pulled him up and over to the motorcycle.

"Your parents, the Michaels, and Mr. Drew and Mrs. Winchester are in the car going to the hospital. You, Silena, and Derek are coming with three of us to get you back to the hotel," the person said in a voice that was obviously feminine. She pulled him onto her motorcycle. Derek and Silena were forced to do the same. The motorcycles revved to life. They were off like a shot. Luke held on tightly, especially considering he had no helmet on and if he fell, he couldn't spare the brain cells he would lose if he fell off and hit his head.

Within twenty minutes the motorcycles pulled up in front of the hotel. Luke hopped off. Silena and Derek came to stand by him.

"Thank you for saving us back there. Tell your leader that too," Silena said.

"We will. Try to avoid any more trouble. We won't be able to save you every time," the girl warned.

"Why won't Penn let us talk to her?" Luke asked.

The person to the girl's right replied in a deep, gruff voice. "We don't know the whole story. She won't say anything to us. We just know it could get her and others killed. We want to avoid that. And you do too because she's the only reason why Hannah hasn't killed you yet."

"What's that?"

"She needs you alive." The motorcyclists then pulled away from the curb and disappeared in the traffic.

* * *

**Why do y'all think Penn needs Luke, Silena, and Derek alive? Who were the rest of the mysterious fighters.**


	13. Don't Come Back

**Hey guys, how are y'all? Hope you enjoy the chapter :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Most times, it's just a lot easier not to let the world know what's wrong."  
****~Chuck Palahniuk**

* * *

Chapter 13: Don't Come Back

**Luke**

Luke slept fitfully the next few nights, a bad thing considering he had football practice every day and a bowl game today. He had definitely regretted not being able to sleep before the game. However, once the game began, adrenaline coursed through him and he was rearing to go. His team was winning by a landslide. It was just past the fourth quarter, the score 45-14. There was no way they _weren't_ going to win this. There was nothing that could go wrong.

And naturally, he thought too soon. An explosion rocked one of the VIP boxes, halting the football game. Panic surged through Luke when he realized that was the one his parents were in. He started running over to the bleachers. There was a gaping hole in the window and…

"Are those rocks?" Derek asked, sliding to a stop next to him.

"Did those cause the explosion or try to stop it?" Luke added.

"Let's find out."

Before they even moved, the rocks disappeared. And now, _things_ were dropping into the stadium. Things with swords and bows and arrows and armor: Monsters. And that could mean only one thing: Hannah. Whether she was here or not didn't matter. What mattered was that Luke and Derek had to protect everyone from getting hurt.

"Plan of action?" Silena queried, popping out of nowhere. How had she even gotten onto the field?

"Uh, attack?" Luke suggested.

"Works for me." His sister let out a war cry and charged the nearest monster, slicing him in two. When a _dracanae _ tried to shoot her with an arrow, Derek yelled, "THAT'S MY GIRLFRIEND YOU NUMPTY!"

Derek chased after the serpent-like monster. Luke unsheathed his sword and joined the fight. He'd already destroyed two when something hit him in the back of the head. He rolled away from the spot and not a moment too soon because a pike embedded itself in the ground where his head had just been. It belonged to a _Laistygonian_ who was currently stalking over to Luke. It lifted the spear up from the ground and lifted it back to get ready to impale the Jackson boy. Before it could do anything, an arrow sprouted from its throat. It disintegrated, revealing a masked figure.

"I thought I told you to avoid more trouble!" the girl snapped.

"Who _are_ you?" Luke demanded as he scrambled up and stood with her back to back.

"I thought I told you to avoid any more trouble! You're going to give my boss a coronary if you keep nearly getting yourself killed."

"It'd help if you knew who your boss was! And it's not like I find trouble- trouble typically finds me!" Luke yelled as he stabbed another monster.

"You already know it!"

"Penn?"

"Bingo."

"So Bryn."

"Here we go again…" The girl yanked an arrow out of the ground, twirled it between her fingers, before shooting it at a thing that looked suspiciously like an actual vampire. As if reading his thoughts, the girl confirmed, "That was a _Lamia_. They're vampiric demons. Nasty suckers."

"You didn't answer me. Is Penn the same person as Bryn?" Luke asked.

"Gods you have such a one track mind. Listen up Jackson, we shouldn't be here. None of us. My boss especially. The only reason we're here is because we need you alive. So shut up and get out of here and let us buy you time."

His nostrils flared. He grabbed the girl by the shoulders and demanded, "Where is she? Tell me. Now. Hallie Argent. Yeah, I saw what you did up there. There's only one other person who can do that and they wouldn't."

"If you tell anyone I was here, it will lead them to my companions, meaning one of them is Penn. And if you ever want to have a chance to talk to her, you will act like you never knew who I was. But if you say a word, Penn, the people who saved your lives on the bridge, me, we're all going to die. So what are you going to do?" Hallie questioned.

"I'm going to find Penn." Luke dashed away before Hallie could stop him. He got stopped by a massive monster with three heads: one a lion, one a snake, and one a goat. It had lion claws and looked pretty ticked off as its eyes, all six of them, glared at the Jackson boy.

"Hey there kitty," Luke said, slowly backing up. "Want a cat treat? I can get you some. Or maybe a mouse?" The chimera lunged. He jumped out of the way and swung his sword at it. The metal cut into the thigh of the monster but it wasn't near enough to slow it down. Making use of the distraction, and avoiding the snake head, Luke jumped onto the back of the chimera and stabbed his sword down. The lion head let out an agonizing roar, the snake head let out a hiss, and the goat head let out a very unintimidating bleat before the entire monster disintegrated and Luke dropped to the ground in a crouch.

Derek shouted his name before sliding next to him while simultaneously firing an arrow at a sphinx that had been following him.

"Got some moves there Legolas," Luke laughed.

"Shut up. So how are we going to get out of this? I mean, I'd catch myself on fire and run through the ranks but I don't want Hannah knowing who I am just yet."

"Find Penn. She has answers and I want them."

"Aye, aye, captain," Derek said. A few moments later he shouted, "There!"

Luke turned his head. Far in the distance, in the middle of the field, dark-haired Penn fought a manticore that was showering projectiles at her. She dodged them but it was obvious by her movements that one had hit her in the leg and was causing her evident pain.

"We need to help her," Derek stated, running towards the location. Luke followed. Just as they reached Penn, she back-flipped over the manticore and sliced his head off before he knew what she'd done. She yanked the stinger from her leg and tossed it to the ground. Penn looked up and for a brief second, Luke's heart soared at the sight of her. He'd been _right_. It _was_ Bryn. But that momentary elation disappeared when she bolted away. Luke chased after her, Derek keeping pace with him. He heard Silena call out to them but he ignored her. He wanted answers and the only person who held them was running away from him. She was aiming for the tunnel where the football players ran out of and if Luke and Derek didn't speed up, she would make it. They were gaining on her as they ran into the tunnel. Penn was going so fast that she had to bound off the wall to avoid crashing into it.

"She's heading for the gates," Derek observed.

"SHUT THE GATES!" Luke hollered. The security guard heard him, pressing the button. The door started going down. Penn put on a burst of speed before she slid to the ground and under the door just before it slammed shut. The boys skidded to a stop, the door shutting fully right when they got there. Luke banged his fists on it, swearing in Greek.

"Hang on," Derek said, resting his hand on the Jackson boy's shoulder. The world went black and Luke felt nauseous for a few brief seconds. When the black disappeared, they were on the other side of the door.

"Did we just shadow-travel?" Luke asked.

"Yep. Sorry, didn't have time to warn you about the side-effects."

"At least tell me we're about to. I feel like I've been in a washing machine."

"First off, you don't know what that's like and second, let's find Penn. She couldn't have gone far."

The two boys started jogging into the parking lot. "You saw her too right? I'm not just imagining it?"

"That it looked like Bryn with dark brown hair? No, you're not. We'll tell Silena but I think Penn and her friends are right: we can't tell anyone about her real identity until we know what's going on."

"Unfortunately, I agree with you. Come on." They started to search the parking lot when a sharp, short whistle caught their attention. Turning around, they saw a Pegasus, solid black, fly past the roof of the stadium. A figure leapt unsteadily onto it.

"That would be Penn," Derek said.

"What about her com- never mind." Sixteen more pegasi shot up into the air, following their leader.

"What are we going to do now?"

"Wait for our next opportunity. She can't evade us forever."

* * *

Upon getting back into the stadium, Derek and Luke found everyone still in pandemonium. Ambulances had arrived and were taking care of people who'd been injured which wasn't too many but enough that the EMTs felt understaffed. Silena was one of the people being taken care of although she was adamantly arguing with medics that there were people in more need of help than her. They must've believed her because they left. She quickly pulled some ambrosia out of her pocket and started nibbling on it.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked.

"I'm fine. What about you two? Did you catch Penn?" Silena responded.

"Don't you think we'd have her with us if we did?" Luke snapped. When his sister glared at him, he added sheepishly, "Sorry…"

"Jackson! Michaels! Where the devil did you two go?" Coach Matterhorn barked, running up to them.

"We've been here, sir," Derek said.

"Why the hell couldn't I find you then?"

"There was so much commotion, you must've lost us."

The coach groaned. "Why is it, whenever something happens, it's always you two at the scene?"

"Trust me, sir, we've been trying to figure that out for a while now," Derek answered in amusement. The coach shook his head, warned them to be in the locker room in fifteen minutes, and left.

Glancing around to make sure no one would overhear them, Luke whispered, "Silena, promise me you won't tell anyone else what I'm about to tell you. You can only talk to me and Derek about this."

"You know you can always trust me," Silena said.

"Derek and I got a good look at Penn, and our hunch has been right. It's definitely Bryn. I don't know what her game is, but it's her. We _know_ it is."

"But if she's working for Hannah, why is she protecting us?"

"Hallie said she needed us for something."

"What's that something though?"

"More questions. No answers. This is why we need to find her."

"We will. Now get going before you get in trouble with coach again."

* * *

_Typically sitting on a beach would calm almost anyone down. However, it could not calm down the angry grandson of Poseidon whose emotions were causing the waves to crash against the beach. Luke was walking along the shoreline, muttering to himself about all the crap going on and wondering why the gods couldn't go a century without pissing off some strong and powerful. Why couldn't he have _one_ normal day? Hey, even five minutes would be appreciated. But no. Demigods didn't get that luxury._

"_Hey you," a girl greeted. Luke stopped in his tracks. Bryn stared up at him, hands clasped behind her back._

"_What are you doing here?" he asked gruffly._

_She seemed taken aback by his tone but replied kindly, "I told you I'd come see you again. Obviously something is bothering you. What can I do to help?"_

"_You can give me some answers and stop lying to me," he told her bluntly._

"_What are you talking about? I'm not-"_

"_Yes! You are! I _know_ you're Penn. I saw you today. I-"_

"_I thought I told you to stay away from her?!"_

"_I've tried but it's hard when you keep coming to save us and when I have questions for you that you refuse to answer!"_

"_I'm _dead_, Luke, why can't you get that through your head?" Bryn demanded._

"_Because I saw you! I don't know why you're lying to me but how long did you think you could pull it off? I was your best friend Bryn. I'm pretty sure I knew more about you than Derek. I mean I even started to recognize your perfume. After all the battles we've been in, after all the secrets we shared, why have you decided to lie to me now? Did I do something?" By now Luke's anger was being replaced by exhaustion and confusion, and he just wanted answers. He turned away from Bryn and clasped his hands behind his hanging head. "Just… tell me what's going on with you. I'll leave you alone. I promise."_

"_Please don't make me do this… I once knew you better than I knew myself, and if I told you what was really going on, you would not leave me alone. In fact you'd probably want to find me even more. But believe me when I say I'm dead. I'm dead and there's no way for me to escape that no matter how much either of us wish it wasn't true. I- I have to go but I'll come see you again and-"_

"_No," Luke interrupted._

"_What?"_

_He turned around. Bryn stared at him with wide eyes. "Until you decide to tell me what's going, don't come see me again. I can't deal with it. Physically I'm fine, but mentally I'm a wreck. I can't get you out of my head. I see you getting impaled every time I close my eyes. When I'm not thinking of a plan to defeat Hannah, I'm thinking of you and what you're doing. I'm able to hide my problems from everyone but knowing you're alive, knowing you're lying straight to my face, it's another addition to my current list of problems. I have many problems, half of them caused by me overthinking and overanalysing things, but this… this is one of the few I think I can solve for just a little while."_

"_You think me staying away from you will solve it?" Bryn asked quietly._

"_It won't solve it, but it will help. Just until you decide to tell me the truth."_

_The daughter of Zeus stared down at the sand, kicking it. Looking back up, she said, "Then I guess this is goodbye."_

"_I guess it is. I'll see you when you want to tell me what's going on."_

"_Yeah." Bryn gave him a sad smile and deep down, he knew he wouldn't be seeing her again. "Take care of yourself Luke. Tell Silena and Derek to take care of themselves too."_

_Then, with a snap of her fingers, Bryn was gone._

* * *

The next day, Luke stayed unusually quiet. Derek picked up on in almost instantly. He tried to get it out of his friend but nothing worked. Silena attempted to do the same but it didn't work either. Derek had just left to go downstairs. The boys were catching rides with their parents back home. Luke was finishing packing when someone knocked on his door. Thinking Derek had forgotten his key to get back in, Luke opened the door. Annabeth stood there, staring at her son with concerned eyes.

"Hey mom," Luke said.

"Can you talk?" she queried.

"Uh, yeah." He moved aside so she could enter. Shutting the door, he faced his mother.

"You're not okay. I know that look of yours. It's the same look I had when your father disappeared and I was sick with worry over him, constantly wondering if he was dead. You're thinking the same thing about Bryn, aren't you?"

It was times like these when he really hated how his mother could pick up on all his emotions. Knowing it was futile to resist, he plopped down on his bed. "She visited me last night. I told her I know she's alive, she told me she was dead, I told her to stop lying to me and not to come visit me until she decided to tell me the truth. She… she just gave me a smile and told me to take care of myself, told me to tell Silena and Derek the same thing, snapped her fingers and disappeared. I'm not going to see her again. Her smile said as much. I act like I'm okay but I'm not. It's driving me crazy not knowing what she's doing and I… I miss her. I miss her so much, mom…"

A knot formed in his throat. He tried to push it down. Annabeth sat next to him. "It's okay to be upset. You don't have to hold it in, sweetie."

"But I have to be strong for Silena and Derek."

"You don't have to be strong for anyone. They're going through the same thing you are. If, for any reason, you couldn't reach me or your father to talk to, you could always talk to your sister and Derek. They'd understand. Come here." Annabeth pulled her son into a hug. He let himself cry. He'd been holding it in for a long time now. The moment was incredibly nice until someone banged on the door.

"Who's that?" Annabeth asked.

"No idea," Luke said, hurriedly wiping away his tears.

"You go get ready. I'll see who it is." The Jackson boy nodded and headed to the bathroom. He left the door cracked so he could listen in.

"Percy! What's the matter?" Annabeth asked, sounding befuddled. Luke poked his head out of the bathroom. His father stood in the doorway, eyes wide.

"We need to get to Camp Half-Blood. Peleus. He's missing."

"Peleus? You mean-" Annabeth began.

Percy nodded. "Yes, I mean the dragon guarding the Golden Fleece. He's missing."

* * *

**Do you think Bryn will be able to stay away? Review :)**


	14. The Bad Guy's A Saint

**Enjoy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Insanity runs in my family. It practically gallops."  
****~Cary Grant**

* * *

Chapter 14:

"_How do you lose a dragon?_" Luke blurted out. Percy looked over at him, concern settling over his face.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," Luke answered.

Percy obviously didn't believe this but he let it drop. Facing Annabeth, he said, "Chiron said we need to get back immediately. Peleus isn't the only thing that's missing."

"What else is?" she replied.

"Bryn's belongings. All of them."

"I'm almost done packing. We'll be down soon," Luke said. Percy nodded. Annabeth grabbed her son's backpack and patiently waited for him to zip up his suitcase. They headed downstairs and into the car. Silena took the middle. On the way, Luke told them what happened in his dream, avoiding the part about telling Bryn not to come back until she decided to tell him the truth. The group fell silent, each trying to figure out what she was doing. Silena chose to use music to help her focus. Luke peered out the window. Derek chose to sleep, his face smushed against the window. Luke could only think of how amusing that must be for any passer-byers.

* * *

**Derek**

_In most cases, dark rooms, for demigods, meant two things. First, something really bad had happened. Second, something really bad was about to happen. This time, it was the former. There was three people. Two of them Derek had dreamed about before: Ty and Scott. The former was sitting down next to a bed, blocking Derek's view of who was actually in it. The latter was pacing restlessly up and down the room._

"_Would you stop that?" Ty groaned._

"_She hasn't woken up in three days. We need to get her medical attention. We're way in over our heads," Scott argued._

"_No, she told us we couldn't. How are the others?"_

"_Fine. Exhausted but fine. They'll live. I'm not sure about her though."_

"_She shouldn't have done that. They were supposed to do it in equal parts!"_

"_She did it to make sure we survived," Hallie piped up, albeit weakly, from the doorway. She was leaning against it for support. Scott rushed over to her and helped her to a chair. A few seconds later, Brady and Bradley made their way over._

"_How is she?" one of the twins asked. They looked worse than Hallie._

"_Hasn't woken up yet. Her heartbeats faint… but she's still alive," Ty said._

"_Can we have some alone time with her? Just me and Brady."_

"_Yeah, sure." Ty got and with Scott, helped Hallie back to her room. The two boys continued down a dimly lit hallway. In a whisper, Scott inquired, "What do you think?"_

_Ty shook his head. "Bryn won't be alive in the morning. It would take a miracle and we've run out of those."_

Derek woke with a shout.

"Oh my gods!" Percy shouted, throwing his fries up in the air. It was a good thing the car was stationary or else Derek was pretty sure they would've crashed into something.

"What's wrong?" Silena demanded.

"Bryn. She's not- she's- Luke, she was right."

"What do you mean?" Luke looked at his friend.

"She's dead. I don't know when… or how, but she's as good as dead. Ty said she'd be dead by morning unless they had a miracle and that they're all out of those. She wasn't lying to you Luke. She is dead…"

"She faked being dead once. She could do it again," Luke grumbled.

"Not this time she couldn't. Hallie said Bryn did something to make sure the rest of them lived. I don't know what she meant by that but whatever it was, it didn't sound good."

"So she's really-" Silena began.

"Yeah… she is…" Derek trailed off. Luke's face had gone a deathly white as he looked down at the floor of the car. Silena fiddled with her thumbs and said, "I thought that maybe there could've been a way to save her… I guess not now."

"Bryn made her choice. You three know better than anyone that once she set her mind to something, she succeeded. If she didn't want your help, even you had caught her and talked to her, she wouldn't have listened. Do not blame yourselves, all right?" Annabeth said.

"Yes mom…"

* * *

**Luke**

Numbness settled into his bones. After he told Bryn not to come near him until she decided to tell him the truth, Luke found out she _had _been. Now he couldn't tell her he was sorry. Bryn wouldn't come back to him in a dream now. He'd seen the hurt on her face, he'd heard the undertone in her voice when she said "Then I guess this is goodbye." Luke had had the chance to tell her he loved her and he'd blown it. Again.

The remainder of the trip was silent. Luke didn't speak. Silena and Derek preoccupied themselves with reading and music. Percy and Annabeth discussed multiple topics, the only ones that caught Luke's attention were when they were speaking about the missing dragon. He still couldn't understand how you lost an _entire_ _dragon_. Apparently is was possible though.

Pulling up to camp, they were greeted by Chiron. He greeted them amiably but his expression was grim and worried. He led them over to Thalia's Pine Tree. The Golden Fleece glittered in the branches but the sight seemed strange without Peleus there.

"He went missing about three days ago. The thing is, the dragon stealer did not leave the Fleece completely unprotected," Chiron explained.

"What do you mean?" Percy asked.

"Whoever took Peleus left a protection spell on the tree. Allow me to- Derek don't!" Chiron was too late though. The son of Hades reached out to touch the tree but his hand struck a barrier about a foot away. It literally blew him away a good twenty feet. The demigods raced to his side. Except for being a little dazed, he seemed unfazed overall.

"What in the- how? How is that possible?" Annabeth demanded.

"A powerful protection spell. It requires multiple demigods to do so. Some of the Athena kids decided to try and figure out how many were there. From what they could tell, there were six demigods total. Two of them stayed away from the tree so we think they were the guards. The other four performed the incantation. If only four did it, then they must've been powerful indeed," Chiron said. Derek, Luke, and Silena shared a look, silently agreeing not to tell their centaur mentor about the Bryn who wasn't dead even though she was supposed to be was, now, actually dead. They were confused themselves about the whole situation. How would they explain it to Chiron without confusing him too?

"So the bad guy is also a saint?" Luke said.

"It looks like it."

"But who would want a dragon?" Percy pointed out.

"Hannah. It has to be," Annabeth said.

"Did she order the person to put the protection spell up? I doubt it," Silena added.

"I doubt it. The person must've done it on their own," Chiron said.

"If Hannah is planning to use that dragon against us, how many of us will be able to kill a dragon most of us have grown up with?"

"If there's a way we can get him back without killing him, we will. Why don't you go unpack?" Luke and Silena helped Derek back on his feet. The three demigods trekked off. Luke plopped down on his bed after he changed into his pajamas. He couldn't be bothered to fully unpack just yet. Silena entered the cabin a few moments later. She climbed onto the bunk above her brother. He heard her rustling in the covers for a few moments before silence.

Luke stared up at the ceiling, on the bottom of Silena's bunk for what felt like hours. He couldn't get his last conversation with Bryn out of his head. He would do anything to take back those words now. Her expression when he told not to come back until she decided to tell him the truth, there was no other way to describe it other than _heartbreak_.

"I'm sorry, Bryn," he whispered.

"Luke?" Silena's upside down head hung from above. "What's wrong?"

He told her the whole story. He couldn't keep that from her anymore. Luke still kept quiet about the curse. That would be too much for her right now. But Silena understood. She gave her brother a big hug, whispering that they would figure this all out. That they would make Bryn proud by saving the world.

"I don't know how in the hell we're going to do it, but we will," Silena declared. "Now come on, let's get some sleep. Chiron wants us to help train the campers tomorrow."

"You're the best Silena," Luke said.

"Yeah, I know. Now get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

"See you in the morning little Lena."

"Shut up. You know I hate when you call me that."

"I know."

"Jerk."

"You still love me."

"Yes but that doesn't mean I have to admit it."

"Night Silena," Luke laughed. But she was already asleep.

* * *

**Poor Luke! Let's hope Silena can help him out of this funk. Review :)**


	15. We Have A Traitor

**Sorry I haven't updated in a while- university is making sure my time is well-occupied by them. Enjoy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**While all deception requires secrecy, all secrecy is not meant to deceive."  
****~Sissela Bok**

* * *

Chapter 15: We Have a Traitor

**Luke**

The rest of his first year at college went without any problems, making Luke believe something horrible or just plain big was about to happen because that's how life worked. He, Silena, and Derek were currently walking up Half-Blood Hill in order to start their summer and help train before the big war, whenever that would be. They were first greeted by Thera who seemed to be enjoying camp a lot more now since she'd made friends with other campers which made Luke happy to see. She was young, enthusiastic, and caring. She didn't deserve to be unhappy due to the fact people were scared of her and her parentage. She walked with them to their cabins and waited for them to unpack their stuff, passing time by asking how their school year went. Luke told her everything with the exception of finding out that Bryn was Penn. If Bryn was dead, then it made no difference now because Penn was dead too.

"Any news on Peleus?" Luke queried.

"None that I know of. I mean, how do you lose a dragon? Peleus was _massive_."

He laughed. "That's what I said when I found out. Come on, it's almost time for dinner." The two demigods met up with Silena and Derek at the dining pavilion. Chiron came over and greeted them, asked if they'd gotten into any more trouble, and proceeded to tell them there was a meeting after dinner for cabin leaders. Thera was joining in since she was the only child for Eris, therefore she was automatically cabin leader.

Luke chowed down on his meal which was barbecue tonight. It was absolutely delicious. Afterwards, some satyrs led the campers to the campfire while Chiron, Dionysus, and the cabin leaders headed to the Big House. Everyone took a seat and the centaur began the talk.

"I've called all of you here to discuss the threat of Hannah and her followers. We've sent in Kira Wallace as a spy to gather information. So far they've been unsuccessful in finding out what exactly her plans are. She keeps those under lock and key with only her top advisors. By the looks of it, she only has two. One is-"

"Ryan London. We've had the pleasure of meeting him a few times," Silena grumbled.

"Yes. Ambitious, strong, and cocky. It's no wonder why Hannah made him a general. The second one is more of a mystery. Only Hannah ever sees this person. We do not even know if it's a boy or a girl. Maybe she is a strategist. Whoever it is, they are under strict security. Kira has been unable to get close enough to them to find out who it is."

"I say we bring the fight to Hannah. She's already attacked our borders more than once. She's taken our dragon. We need to show her we're a formidable power," Nicole Rodriguez argued. She was the daughter of Clarisse La Rue and Chris Rodriguez, named after Silena Nicole Beauregard. She'd taken on most of her mother's traits although she looked more like her father.

"What do you suggest we do? It's not like we can just waltz up onto whatever cruise ship she's on or blow it up like when Percy and Beckendorf did when they were fighting Kronos," Beau pointed out. He was the leader of the Aphrodite cabin and turned out to be more involved in the workings of camp and the training than his predecessors.

"We'd have to sneak on. I'll volunteer to do it," Luke offered.

"I'll join. The sea is our territory, Hannah or no Hannah," Silena joined in.

"Well I'm certainly not letting my friends have all the fun. Count me in," Derek said. Chiron hesitated before allowing the three demigods to do so. He was about to continue the conversation when an Iris message appeared in the center of the table, hovering so the person could see all around. It was Cora, and she looked disturbed.

"Luke, Silena, Derek, who are all these people with you?" Cora asked immediately, staring suspiciously at Nicole and Thera who flanked the outsides of the three demigods.

"We're at a cabin leaders' meeting. Anything you need to say, you can say in front of them," Luke assured.

"Very well. For those of you who do not know me, I am Cora Valdez, daughter of Leo and Calypso Valdez. I'm afraid I come bearing bad news and, well, I'm not sure what to call the second part. Let's start with the bad news. We've lost three demigods to Hannah's army. Silena, Derek, Luke, do you remember Vanessa, Prerana, and Ana?"

"Yes, why? You're not telling me they left…"

"I am. And then two mystery girls paid us a visit. They wore hoods and would look up to allow us to see their faces but both had brown hair. One had light brown hair, the other dark brown. It was the latter who did most of the talking. She spoke very peculiar. I can't place my finger on what it was though."

"Did they just walk into camp?" Silena asked.

"No, they flew in on pegasi. And this is the news where I'm not sure if it's good or bad because I don't trust their motives considering I don't know if they work for Hannah or if they really do want us to have the best chance at winning. They warned us that our best chance to beat Hannah was to join forces with the Greeks. That's what I've been saying this entire time to the rest of the campers, but now that two strangers are condoning we do just that, it makes the whole thing look suspicious. Antony is going to use that to his advantage. He doesn't want to fight. He wants us to prepare to go into hiding until everything passes over and I can't get it through his thick head that there won't be anything we can do if Hannah comes after us and that it's better to fight with the Greeks and put up one hell of a fight if it's going to be our last."

"What reasoning did they give you about why they were telling you that?" Derek queried.

"They said that if we wanted to have even a slight chance of winning, then we should join the Greeks. Antony is going to propose we shouldn't work with you for the sheer fact that the two strangers wants us to. I'm good at telling when people are lying, and it seemed like the girls were being honest, but I don't know what to do. I decided to seek council from you."

Chiron rubbed his chin. "It certainly is suspicious that they've come to you about this. It makes you question their motives, if they really want you to have a good chance at winning or if there's an ulterior motive behind the whole thing. Your mother was always good at detecting lies, so I'm going to assume you've inherited that from her. If you believe they were telling the truth, I would go with your gut instinct. I'm not just saying this because I think it's a good idea for the Greeks to fight with the Romans either. As the battle comes closer, we will coordinate our forces and our attacks to get the best results possible. I'm very-"

Chiron was interrupted my another Iris message coming into view. Everyone stared at the girl with light brown hair and startled brown eyes; Luke recognized her as Hallie Argent. Next to him, Thera shifted in her seat.

"That's her. That's one of the girls that came to Camp Jupiter!" Cora declared, standing up.

"Cora Valdez. Praetor of New Rome. Pleasure. I do hope you have considered what I and my comrade said," Hallie said.

"Who are you?" Chiron demanded.

"Never mind who I am. I reached the wrong person. Good night." Hallie slashed her hand through the message and disappeared. Everyone remained silent for a good minute before Derek said, "That was no mistake she called here. She was calling someone in this room. Question is: who?"

"You seemed to recognize her Luke. Who was she?" Nicole questioned.

"Her name is Hallie Argent. She's a daughter of Hades. I don't know much else. I thought she was working for Hannah but she's saved my life and Derek's and Silena's on multiple occasions. I don't know what side she's on to be honest," he confessed.

"I'm prone to fighting alongside you but if a girl whose loyalties are unknown, I'm not sure if she's trustworthy. I'll think about this some more and let you know of my decision. Good night." Cora ended the message.

"Do you think one of us is a spy in here?" The Nike cabin leader, Juliet, asked.

"That's the only thing that makes sense. But how are we going to find out?" Beau remarked.

"We need a Charmspeaker. Too bad Bryn isn't here to do that," Nicole mumbled. "Wait! What about Piper Grace? Chiron, surely you have a way to contact her? She is probably the best Charmspeaker around."

"That's a brilliant idea Miss Rodriguez. Considering we have no rainbow to do an Iris-message, I'll use the landline and put her on speaker phone. Hang on," Chiron said. The demigods waited impatiently while the phone rang. Quietly, Thera asked, "I know I'm supposed to stay, but I really, really need the bathroom. May I please be excused for a moment?"

"Go ahead Thera. But come right back," Chiron ordered. The little girl nodded and left the room.

Piper came on a few seconds later, greeting the centaur cheerfully. He replied but said, "I'm afraid the reason I'm calling you is anything but happy."

"Oh dear. I figured there was something wrong. How may I help?"

"The cabin leaders, Dionysus, and I are all in the Big House in a meeting. We received a strange call from a girl named Hallie Argent which has led us to believe that there is a spy amongst us. We need your Charmspeak to figure out who it is."

"I've never done this over the phone but I'll try. Can you give me a list of names of everyone in there? I think it'll be more effective if I ask each individual rather than as a group," Piper said. Chiron said a name, and she asked, "Are you the spy Hallie was trying to contact?"

One by one, she went around the room. When it was Luke's turn, he shivered at the power of the Charmspeak but his answer was no. It was the truth. When everyone had given the same answer of 'no', Piper remarked, "Maybe there isn't a spy in the group."

"Wait, where's Thera? She should've been back by now," Derek said suddenly. Luke swore colorfully as he got up. _She _was the spy. It explained why she had shifted in her seat when Hallie called. It explained why she left right before Piper came onto the phone. She was trying to escape, and she knew she'd be able to because who would think a nine year old girl was a spy? Silena and Derek were hot on Luke's heels with the rest of the cabin leaders following them. The first place Luke checked was Thera's cabin but she wasn't there. She could've gone anywhere. She could've gone in the woods, she could've gone to the beach, she could've gone to Half-Blood Hill… but Luke's gut told him she'd gone to the sea. If Thera knew she'd been found out, then she'd contact Hallie to tell her the mission had been compromised.

His intuition paid off. Thera was trying to send an Iris-message, violently throwing a drachma into the sea. Nothing was happening though. When she saw the cabin leaders coming onto the beach, she bolted. Evan, the head of the Apollo cabin, was the one who caught her. She screamed and fought against him but he didn't let go.

"Thera, easy, easy. Stop screaming," Luke said gently, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Let me go! Just let me go!" she cried.

"We're not going to hurt you for being a spy. We just want to know who you're spying for and all that you've told them," Derek added kindly.

"I'm not going to say a word. Nothing. My leader's been good to me. I'm not going to betray her," Thera declared firmly.

Chiron sighed. "Bring her back to the Big House. We'll put her in the cell with twenty-four-seven protection. I hate treating a nine-year-old as a prisoner of war but she's still a spy. Come along."

Luke held out his hand for Thera to take, promising her she'd be well taken care of if she cooperated with them and didn't try to run away. Hesitantly, the girl agreed, allowing him to lead her to the Big House where she officially became a prisoner of war.

* * *

**Did any of y'all see that coming? I hope not. Please review :)**


	16. Be Our Guest

**I feel like a should name this story 'Plot Twist' because that's all that seems to happen now is a plot twist none of you were expecting :) Just wait until the second half of this book. You're all going to hate me. Again. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**All warfare is based on deception."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 16: Be Our Guest

It'd been a week of interrogating Thera but she held firm, keeping her mouth shut. She had guard detail on her twenty-four-seven in case someone tried to rescue her. After a week of nothing else happening, everyone doubted anything would happen, but they were still wary.

Luke was sitting with Thera again, attempting to get information out of her, if only what she was supposed to relay to her leader. Chiron had left because he had to go watch over the campers at the campfire, leaving Luke alone with Thera. She stared at him for a few moments before saying, "Are you okay?"

"Just wanting to get some answers out of you, but I have a feeling that won't be happening," he replied with a humorless smile.

She was hesitating, Luke could tell. She wanted to tell him something but didn't know if she could. Biting her lip, she said, "I… I was just supposed to keep any eye on you. Tell my leader how you, Silena, and Derek were doing and what you were doing. Only you three. My leader only cares about how and what you three are doing. Nothing more."

"Why? What's so important about me, Silena, and Derek? And who is your leader?"

"I have multiple leaders."

"Is one of them Hannah?"

"No. My leaders watch over you because you, Silena, and Derek were their sister's best friends," Thera said. "They want to know so they can keep an eye on you, so they can protect you."

"Bradley and Brady. The Winchester twins… they're your leaders."

Thera nodded. "They know you know they're on the other side so they don't care if you know I'm working for them."

"Are they your only leaders?"

"No, but they're the main ones."

"Do you know who the mystery commander is for Hannah?"

"Yes, but I'm sworn to secrecy on that. I know what happens if you break a secrecy oath. The gods don't take kindly to that."

"But you're serving Hannah. Why do you believe in what the gods will do to you?"

"Because I don't technically serve Hannah. I follow her secret commander who _does_ serve Hannah. It's complicated, and you'll find out everything if we all survive this upcoming war."

"I will?"

"Yeah. My leaders aren't going to keep you in the dark forever. Just until they find it the right time."

"What if there will never be a right time?"

"There's always a right time. Sometimes we don't always take advantage of it but it is better late than never, right? Why do you look sad? Is it something I said?" Thera queried.

"Uh, no… it just reminded me of something. You're right about there's always being a right time, but sometimes you're too late to do anything," Luke explained, reminiscing back to his conversation with Bryn when he told her not to come back until she was going to tell him the truth. Now she never would. He'd messed up and it was too late to do anything. It was too late to tell her he loved her. That was one thing he'd never forget, one thing he'd never forgive himself for. "You remember there was a girl named Bryn that used to live here? She was a daughter of Zeus? She was here before you came but I'm sure you've heard of her." Thera nodded. "Well, she and I went through a lot together. We became really close with each other. I… I wanted to be more than just friends but because of our parentage, it couldn't really happen. I always wanted to tell her that I loved her, but I never got the chance. She died before I could, died trying to get me away from Hannah… Silena told me Bryn knew that I loved her, and that she loved me, but I don't know."

"I wasn't here to know her, but I think that if she died trying to rescue you, and listening to Silena tell me about that quest, it seems to me that she did love you."

"You're very wise for a ten year old, did you know that? Listen, I have to go tell Chiron what you told me. At least some of it. Maybe keep the latter part of our conversation between us. I'll be back later, okay?"

"Okay," Thera said, leaning against her bed. Luke left her cell and went upstairs. The two guards stationed outside nodded in greeting to him.

"Anything?" Silena queried, walking up to him.

"Yeah, actually. Found out why she was here, who some of her leaders are too," he replied.

"How on earth did you do that?"

"No idea but I'm going with it. I'm heading to see Chiron to tell him what I learned." Silena joined him. The siblings reached the campfire in a short amount of time, right when one of the Ares' kids finished his breakdance. Luke wasn't sure when breakdancing became a part of campfire tradition but he certainly wasn't going to try and stop it. It was pretty awesome.

"Any news?" Chiron queried, trotting up to the two demigods. Derek popped up next to Silena. Just as Luke was about to tell his mentor all that he'd found out, shadows flew above the group. Seven to be exact. Everyone looked up.

"Luke, Silena, Derek, how nice it is to see you," a boy called out.

"Brady or Bradley, which one of you is it?" Silena called back, placing her hands on her hips.

"Both actually," The other twin said as the two dropped from their Pegasus and gracefully onto the ground. "Although I'm Bradley."

"And I'm Brady," the one on the left said.

"What do you want?" Silena ordered, walking towards them.

"Just coming to give some friendly advice. Particularly about the Romans," Bradley remarked.

"I think they're having trouble wrapping their mind around the fact that there's a new force in this war that could potentially have a really terrific chance of winning," Brady added.

"Antony in particular was not very happy about it. I wanted to punch him more than usual. Besides, I would've loved to wipe that 'I'm-Superior-to-Every-One-of-You-Here' smirk. That would've given me so much satisfaction."

"You do get satisfaction out of it, for the record," Luke said. The twins stared at him with an expression that could almost be described as amusement and approval. Silena slapped him on the arm.

"Might I ask you something?" Brady queried.

"You just did," Luke responded.

"Why did you punch him?"

Luke shifted uneasily on his feet. "Saying things that weren't true, about Bryn in particular. I lost my temper."

"What was his expression?"

"Enough of this. Boys, get back on track. We have a schedule to keep!" One of the riders shouted from above.

"Right! Luke, we will discuss that another time. If we live to talk to one another which brings me to why we actually came here. We gave the Romans the same courtesy as mentioned before but we thought that maybe if we talked to you, they'd feel better about going through with it. I mean we all know you're going to tell them we came," Bradley said.

"Are you telling us to form an alliance with the Romans? Because we're trying, but you only made it worse because now it looks suspicious that the enemy wants us to join together," Derek pointed out.

"Oh it does doesn't it? But we're not your enemy. Not completely anyways. I mean, we've saved your life on multiple occasions."

"Only because we were Bryn's best friends. Thera told me why you sent her here and-" Luke stopped before swearing colorfully in Greek. "This was a distraction. You're not here to warn us, you're here to take her back!"

Derek started to move towards the Big House where Thera was being kept but a lightning bolt struck the ground in front of him, blowing him backwards.

"Why does that keep happening to me?" he groaned, staggering back up.

"Campers, form a circle and keep them there!" Nicole barked. Weapons were drawn immediately. The twins went back to back, drawing their swords.

"Someone needs to take care of their air support!" Beau observed.

"Leave that to me and Silena and the Apollo cabin. Derek, take the Nike and Hermes kids to go make sure Thera is still there," Luke ordered. Derek nodded and led the way to the Big House with his followers behind him. While the Apollo kids fired arrows at the circling riders, Luke gave his best taxi-whistle. Blackjack and another Pegasus, Roulette, landed next to them in less than a minute. He and Silena hopped on their steeds and shot into the air. Luke saw some of the Apollo kids race to the stable to get rides as well. He hoped they'd hurry. He had a feeling these fighters were anything but ordinary.

"Do they really think that a circle is going to contain us?" Bradley queried.

"We're sons of Zeus!" Brady laughed. "Just to name one."

The two boys shot into the sky, hovering above everything. Their cockiness was ticking Luke off. He turned Blackjack to the twins, heading straight for them so he could knock them off their high horse… or high wind. Whatever you want to call it. Luke was almost there when one of the riders flew up in front of him, blocking the path. Blackjack reared, causing the Jackson boy to lose his hold on the reins. The person who'd blocked his path grabbed his hand to prevent him from falling but in turn they lost their balance and the two started plummeting to the ground. Blackjack dove underneath Luke, catching him but knocking the wind out of him. He looked around for the rider who'd tried to save him so he could at least do them the same courtesy of trying to save them from falling. When Luke didn't see them, he feared they'd become an unfortunate demigod pancake. That was until he saw the person surfing on one of the twins' backs.

"Drop me off near the woods," the rider ordered. It was definitely a girl unless the rider was a guy with a really high-pitched voice. Luke doubted his latter assumption.

"Who are you?!" Luke demanded.

"We are trying to help you! But we are not letting Thera rot in a cell. She has so much potential and you are letting that go to waste!" the girl explained. Luke was about to respond when he heard the other twin singing at the top of his lungs: "Be our guest! Be our guest! Our command is your request! It's been years since we've had anybody here! And we're obsessed-"

"Bradley shut up! We're not their guest you idiot!" another mystery girl snapped. Her voice sounded familiar…

"Come on, I need something other than you to be my sanity's saving grace," he joked.

"Did you have to use a pun with my last name?" the girl groaned.

"Vanessa? Vanessa Grace?" Luke stated.

"Hi Luke! Nice to see you're still alive!" Vanessa said.

"What are you doing?!"

"Trying to get Thera. I mean I'd keep it a secret but considering you already figured it out, I see no point in continuing in deceiving you. I mean we really did try to convince you to get with the Romans, we just weren't going to tell you our ulterior motive."

"This is madness! What are you doing serving Hannah? You're insane!"

"I'm not insane! I actually do know what I'm doing although I question if you do. Now no time for chitchat, it's time for us to leave."

"But you don't have The- Hallie. She can shadow-travel."

"You do have some Athena in you I see. This is where we take our leave. Nice seeing you again Luke. Stay out of trouble. If that's possible for you. I don't think it is although in your defense trouble usually finds you. In any event, I'll be seeing you again. Of that I'm sure. Until next time." Vanessa saluted him and swerved her Pegasus towards the ocean. The others followed her. At that moment, Luke remembered Brady had dropped the girl who'd been back-surfing on him in the woods. He'd seen her go in there. He veered Blackjack to the woods, keeping an eye out for her. Luke found her going towards Zeus's Fist. He had Blackjack fly above her. Luke jumped onto her from behind. They went skidding in the dirt. It was a bad move on his part considering not only was she hurt and groaning from pain, but so we he. He probably should've thought that out more. He pushed himself up only to find the girl with an arrow drawn and pointed at his face. He held his hands up in surrender.

"Who are you?" Luke questioned. "Why are you doing this to us?"

"We are not here to hurt you. Any of you. We want you to be alive. Bradley and Brady promised they would watch out for you in honor of Bryn due to you three being her best friends."

"She's dead. Why would they continue to keep their promise?"

"They did not know her long. Maybe it is their way of keeping her close."

When she still didn't lower her bow, he asked, "Are you going to kill me?"

"No, but I am going to escape you." She shot the arrow between Luke's feet. Black smoke rose up, blocking his view. Luke heard her leaving the scene but was unable to go after her.

"Adler, get him out of there!" he heard her shout. Who was Adler? Claws (or were they talons?) grabbed onto Luke's back. He let out a yell as he was yanked up into the air. Looking up, Luke had to blink a few times to make sure he wasn't dreaming. An eagle the size of a horse was carrying him back to his comrades. Some were regrouping, others were staring at awe at Luke being carried by a giant eagle. When it set Luke down, Derek said, "Not you again."

At first Luke thought his friend was speaking about him until he realized Derek was glaring at the Adler the Eagle.

"Thank you, Adler. I appreciate it," Luke said. "Have a… nice flight home wherever that is."

Adler nudged Luke affectionately on the cheek, screeched at Derek, and flew off. Derek flipped the bird off, muttering something about needing to eat eggs in front of Adler. Luke wasn't quite sure what his friend was mumbling about. He kind of didn't want to know.

"Everyone okay?" Luke inquired.

"Physically? Yes. But I think all of our egos are bruised. Those people… I've never seen anyone fight like them. They've been trained to be the best. And the best they are. Luke, if all of Hannah's soldiers are trained like them, we stand no chance," Derek noted solemnly.

"Thing is, they didn't hurt any of us," Silena pointed out. "They were on the defensive the whole time. Sure they knocked our weapons out of our hands or knocked us to the ground but the ones I was fighting had plenty of opportunities to kill me and they didn't."

"So we have a mystery group of nine fighters that could kick an entire army's behind and we just lost our one source of information because one of them is a freaking daughter of Hades!" Nicole ranted.

"I don't think they're going to hurt us. At least not right at this moment. For now I say we ignore them and focus on dealing with Hannah. She's our primary concern. But considering that everyone here knows these fighters aren't like the normal ones we go against, and that Hannah's army could possibly have the same training, we need to train harder than we already are. We need to learn new techniques. I think that's why they want us to ally ourselves with the Romans. I didn't see much of their fighting style but I figured out enough that all of them knew both Greek and Roman styles of fighting. It lets them adapt to any battle they need to. That's what we need to do."

"How though? The Romans don't exactly like us," Beau said. "Or at least not half of them."

"No, but Cora does. When we tell her what happened here, maybe she'll agree to let us send some ambassadors from here to there and vice versa. It won't hurt to try. And if Antony tries to protest, I'll just punch him again. Let's get everyone cleaned up because we have a lot of work ahead of us."

* * *

**There's the new chapter! Things are heating up and it's only going to get bigger and better (and more painful- I'm sorry, it's true). Review :)**


	17. We Blow Up a Ship

**Y'all enjoyed the last chapter apparently and we're getting close to where things start tying together so you're not as confused as to who's on whose side. It's gonna be so good (I hope)! Enjoy!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Trust is built with consistency."  
****~Lincoln Chafee**

* * *

Chapter 17: We Blow Up a Ship

**Derek**

"Are we sure this is a good idea?" Derek groaned. The three of them were sitting on the grass on a picnic blanket in Central Park. It was a sunny day but that didn't help lighten their mood.

"Yes, but only if you act normal and stop looking for attackers," Luke said sarcastically.

"We're literally intending to have Hannah come kidnap us and do nothing about it. Do you see the flaw in this plan?" he pointed out. Silena rubbed her boyfriend's shoulder sympathetically. He rested his chin on his hand. Derek wanted to ask Bryn what to do. She always seemed to know the right strategy or right answer to everything, even if it wasn't always correct. But Bryn wasn't here anymore. It was still unreal. He always felt that she was watching over them. Maybe it was real, or maybe it was just his imagination trying to comfort him. Whichever case it was he didn't want it to end. The comfort from it was real, and it made bearing her death a little bit easier. Just because it'd almost been a year since her death didn't mean it'd gotten easier. Derek felt like the reason he couldn't forget is because she had died so horribly and her killer was still out there.

"Trying not to see it," Luke admitted.

"So what do you talk about when you're waiting for your impending doom?"

"Normal stuff I guess."

"We're demigods. There is no normal stuff for us," Silena joked.

"She has a point."

"I don't know about you but I'm going to get some rest before we get kidnapped," Luke said. He stretched out on the ground, crossed his arms behind his head, and closed his eyes. Within a few minutes, he was asleep. Silena rested her head on Derek's shoulder.

"How are you doing?" she questioned.

"What do you mean?"

"You seemed stressed. Well, more than usual. What's up?"

"I don't know. I'm just… worried. Worried about this plan, worried about what Hannah is doing, worried about what the twins are doing, I miss Bryn… it's a lot of things," he confessed, ripping some grass out of the ground.

"Worrying won't do anything except make you stress more than you already are," she consoled.

"We're outnumbered Silena. Hannah has more soldiers, has more weapons, has more of _everything_. I mean sure we got the Romans to cooperate and sure that's doubled our numbers but compared to Hannah's army? Our chances are slimmer than slim of surviving this. I just… I hoped that our generation wouldn't have to deal with something like this, let alone me and the girl I'm in love and my best friend having lead the entire crusade."

"We're demigods. And maybe you wouldn't have been involved had you not befriended three children of the Big Three," she said with a slight hint of amusement. "If my parents could survive Kronos and Gaia, then we can beat Hannah, whatever she is. There's always a way for us. We'll find the way that will lead us to victory," she promised. "But just remember that no matter how this turns out, I love you, and you, me, Luke, we'll always have each other."

"What if one of us doesn't make it though? We say we'll always have each other but we won't. I always thought Bryn would be around and look where she is… I'm scared Silena."

"As you should be, Mr. Michaels," a guy said from behind them. The couple whirled around. Ryan London stood in front of them, looking smug. He had about thirty monsters behind him as backup. "Isn't this a nice surprise? A little picnic in Central Park? Did you really think you could walk out here without having a visit from us?"

"We could always hope," Luke said, continuing to lie down. He covered his eyes from the sun and stared distastefully at Ryan. "You know, I can't tell what's brighter: the sun or your teeth."

"I'm trying to tell if you're insulting me or complimenting me," Ryan responded.

"Well if I wanted to compliment you, I'd say you were prettier than Aphrodite but that is definitely not the case."

"What's with the attitude? You're about to be kidnapped," Ryan pointed out.

"I know. I also know I can't do anything about it. My hands and legs might be tied up in a few minutes but for the time being my mouth isn't, and I fully intend to use it until I can't."

"I'd cut your tongue if Hannah didn't want you intact. While I do find it strange that you have allowed yourselves such easy capture, I'm going to look past that. Capturing you is more important. Besides, what could you possibly do in handcuffs? Rope 'em guys."

Someone hit Derek on the back of the head and he was knocked out.

* * *

Derek woke up in blackness. Panic rose up in his chest. He began to struggle against the bonds holding up him until he heard Silena call out his name.

"Silena? Where are you?" he demanded. "Why can't I see?"

"We're in a room that's pitch black. That's why we can't see. I pretended to pass out so I could figure out where we were on the ship. But they have Luke. I don't know where they took him and I don't know how long we've been down here and I'm trying to stay calm but-"

"Silena, we're going to get out of here. We're sticking to the plan. If it's true the Winchester twins are keeping an eye out on him, on us, they'll know he's here and they'll get him out of there as soon as possible. We're going to get out of here, we'll set the trigger, we'll find him, and we'll get out of here. Now, flame on!" Derek whispered. His hands lit up with fire and burned the ropes tying him to a column. Using the light from his fiery hands, he made his way to Silena and untied her.

"That will never be not cool," she said. "Thank you. Let's go find our stuff, get the charges, get Luke, and get the hell out of here."

The two demigods went to open the door but it was locked. Derek banged his head on the door. "Looks like we're going to have to find a way out of here first. We must be in the cargo hold of the ship considering there's no windows."

"Shh. Someone's coming," she hissed. The two of them hid on each side of the door and waited with bated breath. The door creaked open and someone whispered, "Silena? Derek? You in there?"

Derek sighed in relief. "Damn it Luke. You scared the Hades out of us."

"Can you still flame on?" the Jackson boy asked.

"Yes. How do you think we escaped?"

"Then I didn't scare the Hades out of you."

"Oh my gods Luke," Silena groaned. "Can we just get the charges and go?"

"Way ahead of you."

"How did you do that?" She asked in amazement as she looked at the six explosive charges Luke had in his backpack. As he handed his sister and friend their weapons, he replied, "I had some help. Hallie, Scott, Bradley, anyone coming?"

"No, but someone is bound to if you don't _hurry up_!" Hallie muttered. Derek and Silena went out into the hallway at the sound of the names. Hallie, Scott, and Bradley stood there, weapons drawn and ready. They nodded to Derek and Silena but said nothing.

"Come on. Hallie and Bradley are going to lead us to the engine room. Scott's going to tell the others," Luke explained, walking down the hallway with his sword held tightly in his hand.

"What do you mean tell the others?" Derek demanded.

"I'm telling _my_ comrades. There's only sixteen of us on the ship, including me, Hallie, and Bradley here," Scott replied.

"There's sixteen of you badass fighters?"

"Yes. You know more than one. Ana, Prerana, Vanessa, we're all part of the badass fighters. I'd name the others but that's not important. Get going. Try not blow us up prematurely."

"Don't have any attentions of doing so," Luke promised. Scott disappeared around the corner. Hallie and Bradley led the other three farther down into the ship. Derek felt uneasy but he figured that was from being on the sea. Being a son of Hades on the ocean didn't set well with him.

"What possessed you three to actually go through with this? Or at least why didn't you send some other people in your stead to do this?" Hallie asked.

"Because this was our idea and we're the ones Hannah wants so it was more likely to work with us rather than getting some other demigods killed for no reason," Luke said.

"We can't protect you twenty-four-seven. You're lucky we were on the ship," Bradley said gruffly.

"We don't want your protection. You're working for Hannah. We don't trust you."

"You will," the twin said firmly. They turned to a door and he added, "This is the engine room. Put the charges where you need to. We'll stand guard."

"Luke, stand guard with them. Derek and I will get the charges in place," Silena commanded.

"Why do you need him out here?" Bradley questioned, sounding rather irked.

"Because like my brother said, we don't trust you, and if you decide to turn on us, remember two things: he has the best chance of beating you two and you're on our turf. You won't win." Silena turned on her heel. Derek grinned and said, "I love my girlfriend."

"Just get going," Bradley mumbled. The son of Hades nodded and entered the engine room. Silena was working furiously getting the timers on the charges all set to the same time.

"We need to find a place where they won't be found in case someone comes down here. I say we put three on one of the pipes and the other three on one of the engines," Silena mused. Derek nodded in agreement. He took three of the charges and climbed up to a pipe. He placed the three explosives in a way they wouldn't be seen. He called out to Silena to ask if she was done. When she said yes, they both hit start on the timers. They now had ten minutes and counting to get off the ship.

The two of them went back outside where Luke, Hallie, and Bradley were still waiting for them. The Jackson boy let out a sigh of relief and said, "Thank the gods you two are back. It was really awkward being the third wheel here."

"Wait are they dating?" Derek queried.

"We're not dating," Hallie said.

"Not yet," Bradley stated. "I'm waiting to see if we all survive this before I ask her out."

Hallie looked stunned while Luke simply said, "Don't wait. You'll regret it if you don't."

"Guys, we only have ten minutes. Can you shut up and get us off this boat?" Silena interrupted. Bradley nodded and led the way. They snuck through the hallways, narrowly avoiding being seen by enemies. As they came to a fork in the hallways, Hallie pushed them all inside a bathroom. Footsteps could be heard walking past. Bradley peered outside. His determined expression turned into one of extreme confusion.

"What in Hades' name…?" he said quietly.

"What?" Hallie queried.

"This guy out here. His name is Octavian. He's not supposed to be alive. He died in the war against Gaia. How is he alive?"

"Isn't that Antony's dad?" Derek piped up.

"Yeah, I just always thought he meant another Octavian. And here I thought that all guys named Octavian were jerks. Whoops. Hallie, we need to tell the others about this. For now, we need to get off this ship. We're expected to blow up in T-minus eight minutes." The five of them left the bathroom and entered into a hallway that overlooked the courtyard of the cruise ship. There were restaurants on the sides and in the middle was an arena where a monster was fighting a one of the demigods like Hallie and Bradley. The monster put up a good fight but it was no match for the demigod. It disappeared in a cloud of yellow dust.

"Who's next?" the girl called out.

"She sounds so much like Bryn," Luke murmured.

"You do realize there are more English demigods than just me, Brady, and Bryn? Right?" Bradley inquired, staring at Luke. Luke glared at him but said nothing. At that moment, Brady and Scott ran up to the girl and whispered something in her.

"Duty calls, everyone. I must take my leave. I will see you all soon. Hopefully most of you have regenerated by then." The girl took her leave with the two boys.

"Vanessa, Ana, and Prerana have probably gotten all the Pegasi ready. They'll be fine. Let's get you three onto a deck without being seen. I'm assuming you three are just going to jump into the ocean?" Bradley asked.

"That was our plan," Silena admitted.

"Then it works. Let's go." The five demigods made their way out to the first deck without being seen by anyone. Hallie and Bradley turned to face Silena, Derek, and Luke. "This is where we take our leave. Next time, can you give us some warning about what you're going to do? You're all smart. You can figure something out. Be careful, and we'll see you next time. And I swear to the gods if the next time I see you is because I have to save your butts again-"

"Well you're not going to kill us. Like you said, you apparently need us," Luke finished.

"I'll do something else that'll make you wish you were dead. Off you go and- DUCK!" Bradley shouted. All of them did. He stood back up and fired an arrow at the attacker from behind. "He'll have sounded an alarm. You need to get off now and so do we."

"We'll give you a lift," Silena offered. She grabbed onto Bradley's hand and yanked him over the side of the ship with her. Luke heard the guy yelling for a second before silence. Another second passed and Silena was standing triumphantly on a wave with Bradley standing next to her in shock. "You three coming?"

Luke, Derek, and Hallie, leapt over the side. Luke and Silena led the wave over to the bow of the ship. Sixteen pegasi were saddled and ready to go. All but two had riders on them.

"Riders, up!" A girl barked. All the pegasi leapt into the air. The two that were rider-less flew next to Bradley and Hallie who jumped on them. They joined their group, making it look like they'd been with them the entire time before the hordes of monsters flew onto deck of the cruise ship. Arrows began raining from above. Before he knew what was happening, Derek was on his own separate wave going around the cruise ship.

"What is happening here?! How am I doing this?! This is not my heritage!" He hollered.

"Just go with it!" Silena told him, flipping over him from one wave to another. Figuring he had no other choice, that's exactly what he did. Drawing his bow and arrow, Derek returned fire. Luke and Silena were throwing waves at the boat, knocking it around. Bradley, Brady, and the others were far in the distance by now.

"Guys, we need to get away from here!" Silena said frantically. She grabbed onto Derek's hand. Luke was with her. In the blink of an eye, they were about two hundred feet under water and continuing to go down. Thankfully Luke had had the sense to create an air bubble so Derek could breathe. When he looked up at the cruise ship, a bright light replaced it. Even being so far underwater, he could hear the massive explosion that came from it. Silena propelled them even farther from the boat and took a minute or two for Derek to understand why. It hit him when extremely heavy debris parts began sinking in the place they'd just been.

"Guys. I just realized our ultimate flaw in our plan. We have no way of getting back to camp. Unless Derek can shadow-travel underwater," Luke said. He stared at his friend. "Can you?"

"I can try," Derek offered. Closing his eyes, he imagined Half-Blood Hill. He imagined the three of them standing on it. He opened his eyes when he felt the familiar whirlwind that was accompanied with shadow-travel. He misjudged the distance from being in the middle of the ocean to camp though and he slumped to the ground in exhaustion. Silena and Luke draped his arms around their shoulders and carried him to the Big House where Chiron was waiting for them anxiously.

"What happened to Derek?" He asked worriedly as Luke and Silena set their friend down in a chair.

"Uh-" Luke began.

"Guys, we should probably tell him. If we can trust anyone at camp, it's him," Derek said.

"What have you three been hiding from me now?" Chiron queried. It was evident in his voice that this was not the first time a camper had kept something big from him.

"I'm… a son of Hades. I shadow-travelled us back here. We did blow up the cruise ship by the way," Derek informed.

"You-You're a son of Hades?" Chiron stammered.

He nodded. "I found out when we went to Lupa. I may or may not have risen a skeleton from the ground. Don't ask. We've been keeping it a secret so Hannah won't find out and then we'll have a secret weapon. I can also create hellfire."

"Did you say hellfire?"

"Yes, sir."

"It's been many millennia since I've heard of child of Hades being able to create hellfire. It's a useful, especially considering you're immune to Greek fire."

"Seriously?! So all those times we had a chariot race and one of the Hephaestus kids threw Greek fire into my chariot, I could've kept going?! I could've won!" Derek moaned.

"I like how that's the first thing that popped into your mind upon finding out you're immune to it," Luke remarked.

"You would be too if that's the reason you kept freaking losing…" he muttered.

"Is your power still a secret to everyone else?"

"That we know of. Only one of the Hades kids knows, then there's Luke, Silena, and obviously me. I think Lupa knows. She hinted as much. But if she wouldn't tell me, I doubt she'll tell anyone else. And now there's you."

"We should keep it that way. The more advantages we have over Hannah, the better. I wish you would've told me earlier but I understand why you didn't. Derek, why don't you three head to your cabins and get some rest? We have a lot of training to do before the war. It'll be here sooner than we know," the centaur admonished.

"When will we know it's here? How will we know where it'll be?" Luke questioned.

"We have ways of knowing. Trust me. We'll know. Go get some rest." The three demigods shuffled back to their cabins. The minute Derek's head hit the pillow, he was out.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! What's with Octavian being there? Isn't he supposed to be dead? You'll find out in future chapters :)**


	18. I Talk To My Dead Dad

**I feel like this is going to seem to move fast but there's really no more filler chapters to do! Besides, some of the loose ends are going to be tied up :) I know you're looking forward to that!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."  
****~Franklin D. Roosevelt**

* * *

Chapter 18: I Talk To My Dead Dad

**Antony**

The day started out normally. Antony had breakfast, he yelled at newcomers for breaking some rules and dealt out their punishments accordingly, he sacrificed some stuffed animals for visions from Apollo, he had lunch, trained with the Greeks mainly so he could keep an eye on them as he did not trust them, had dinner, had a meeting with Cora, and then went for a jog. It was on this jog that his day turned sour. His father Octavian, who was actually supposed to be dead, showed up. Antony had a horrible fear of his father. He _looked _dead with his gaunt expression, pale skin, glazed blue eyes, the slump of his shoulders… but his attitude, not to mention his temper, was as alive as ever.

"Hello father," Antony said, kneeling.

"Up. Now," Octavian ordered. Antony did as he was told. "Did you know anything about the Jacksons and that Michaels boy's plan of blowing up Hannah's ship?"

"They did _what_?"

"Don't play stupid with me boy," Octavian growled.

"Sir, I had no idea. I promise. And if Cora knew anything about it, she didn't tell me. You know I would've told if you I knew. Was… was Hannah on the ship?"

"No. She left a few minutes before it happened but her right hand man was severely injured. We don't know if he'll make it. The Jacksons made if off the ship, so did Michaels. Hannah's secret commander left with her troupe luckily. They're the reason we're going to win this war."

"We're lucky they're on our side," Antony remarked. "When are we going to war?"

"In a few days' time. Hannah wants to attack on the summer solstice for some reason."

"Father, what _is_ she? A god, a titan?"

Octavian's smile gave his son chills. "Much, much worse. Next time I see you, it will be to tell you to prepare for battle."

"Yes, sir."

Octavian disappeared. Antony had no idea how he did that but he didn't care. His father gave him the creeps and was the only reason why he acted like a jerk to everyone around him. Being a jerk might not have made him a lot of friends, but it gave him power. The power his father wanted, _needed_ for his son to have.

As Antony was about to continue on running, he was slammed into a tree by two strangers.

"How in Hades' name is Octavian alive?" a familiar, deep voice growled.

"Ah, Brady, Bradley, I was wondering when you two were going to show up."

"Answer our question," Brady ordered.

"I don't know you buffoons. He's been alive longer than I have. I don't know how he was brought back from the dead. The only reason I'm grateful that he was is because I'm alive. Other than that I hate him. He gives me the creeps. Why do you want to know?"

"Because our leader wants to know how your father is alive. What else can you tell us about him?"

"I don't know. He can travel anywhere he wants just by thinking about it. He looks dead, he follows Hannah's orders, he's using me as a tool to control Camp Jupiter, and he thinks I'm a failure. Did I miss anything?" Antony asked sarcastically.

"He's serving Hannah? Does he know what she is?" Bradley inquired.

"He knows but he won't tell me. I've been trying to figure out myself for the past twenty years."

"Wait… you mean Hannah's been alive for the past twenty years? I thought she was only eighteen?"

"Gods no. She's way older than that. It's an illusion. The only thing my dad said after I asked if she was a god or titan was that she was much, much worse. Are you done interrogating me?"

"You will not speak of this conversation to anyone. Hannah does not want our leader to know what she is-"

"But that's obviously not stopping her. Don't worry, I won't say a word. Anything to give Hannah and my dad a disadvantage in the war. I want them to lose."

"So the reason you've been an ass to us all these years is because your dad needed you in power?" Brady stated.

"Pretty much. You two did get on my nerves but I thought most of your pranks were genius."

"You're not half-bad, Antony, but I will never repeat that again. Swear on the Styx you will speak of our conversation to no one. That's the only way we'll trust you."

"I swear on the Styx I won't speak of this stupid conversation. How did you even get in here without being seen?" Antony questioned.

The twins grinned, saying simultaneously, "We have our ways. Until next time Antony."

They disappeared into the woods. Antony let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. The twins had never really frightened him until he found out they were sons of Jupiter. Knowing they were powerful and were actually liked among the other campers meant that they gave Antony a rivalry that had to be watched. It was why he was always so harsh on them. But now they weren't at camp and he had half the camp on his side. Things were going the way his father wanted. But Antony wanted his father to lose. He didn't have the guts to stand up to Octavian so all he could do was pray that Cora or the Greeks had some surprise up their sleeve that could defeat Hannah.

* * *

**Derek**

The training at Camp Half-Blood had become extremely rigorous. There were no such things as breaks. You could take a swig of water and wipe the sweat off your brow but then you were back at training. It certainly improved progress. Everyone could fight really well, better than any of them had been able to before. Some were better at others at sword-fighting but those who weren't as good at sword-fighting excelled in other areas such as archery and building traps.

Not surprisingly, Luke and Silena were the top in sword-fighting. They kind of had an unfair advantage being the kids of Percy and Annabeth Jackson. Besides Luke Castellan, they'd been the best fighters of their generation. They were scary good. Their kids inherited their abilities.

Derek was top in archery. He could hit the smallest of targets. The campers made bets of what he could and couldn't hit. After the end of one day, after he was able to shatter a marble that'd been thrown into the air, no camper bet against him. They learned not to bet against Derek in an archery contest.

It'd been a month since they'd blown up the cruise ship. They found out later that Hannah hadn't been on it but Ryan had. None of them had any idea on his condition or if he was even alive. Derek felt guilty hoping that he wasn't, but at the same time Ryan was a threat to everyone Derek cared about. The safety of his family and friends was more important than anything else, and he was sure as hell going to make sure he didn't lose anyone else, not on his watch. He would die before that happened.

It was breakfast time currently. Derek was shoving his mouth with food and listening to conversations around him. He wasn't much of a morning person and didn't like to talk much. Derek was on his fifth piece of bacon when Chiron cleared his throat. "Campers! I could not be more proud of you. You have all come so far in training and with the nonstop training for the past few months, I think you all deserve a break. Today is your day off. Rest up, fix up any injuries you may have, and relax."

"Sir, when is Hannah going to start this war?" a girl piped up shyly. It was a girl from the Hephaestus cabin.

The centaur grimaced. "My gut is telling me soon. I'll let you know as soon as I do."

With that, Chiron left the dining pavilion. The campers' conversation was sparse after that. They were all frightened about the prospect of fighting in a war, and Derek couldn't blame them. Most of them hadn't seen much action. If they had, it'd been because they'd been attacked by a monster when they weren't at camp.

For most of the day, Derek stayed in his cabin. He had no idea what Luke and Silena were doing. They were probably doing the same thing as him or hanging out by the docks. The two of them liked to do that. The water calmed them. Probably had to do with them being Poseidon's grandchildren.

After dinner, Derek met up with them. Not in the mood for a campfire, the three of them headed to the beach and sat on the docks. Luke took off his shoes and put his feet in the water. Silena stretched out, propping herself up on her elbows so she could peer into the water. Derek lay down next to her, facing the stars. He closed his eyes and let himself relax.

* * *

_He should've known if he let himself relax that something would come along to ruin that. Derek was on an island; that much he could tell. There were two big buildings but other than that, everything else was lush field and forest. He traipsed through the tall grass towards the buildings. The island gave him a creepy feeling which was saying something considering he was a child of Hades. He came across a bridge that crossed onto the second part of the island. He halted when he saw what he did. A massive training ground with a rock climbing wall, twisted ropes that you had to climb up and through to get to a tower, targets for archery, dummies for sword-fighting… this place had everything. As Derek stared in awe, he was broke out of it by a guy yelling frantically. Following the sound, he entered the biggest building on the island. Derek found the guy with the Winchester twins._

"_Scott, what's wrong?" the twins asked at the same time._

"_Word from Hannah. About the war," Scott panted, bracing himself on his knees. By this time, Hallie and Ty had come out of their rooms as well. The former rubbed her eyes tiredly and queried, "What did it say?"_

"_Date, time, battle strategies her troops are doing, everything," Scott explained._

"_When is it?" Ty prodded. "Don't keep us hanging."_

"_Summer Solstice. At eleven at night east coast time. New York City. She's going for Olympus first. The note said that if we win this battle, then we're taking the original Olympus as well."_

"_The Summer Solstice, that's-" A twin began._

"_That's today. June twenty-first," the other one finished grimly._

"_It's today for us, but not for Camp Half-Blood or for Camp Jupiter. It's still June twentieth to them. We need to send word to them somehow. Our leader obviously can't considering her situation so we'll have to do it. Bradley, Brady, go wake her up and tell her what's going on. We'll be mobilizing soon I'm assuming. I'd go wake the others but I don't know what she wants to do."_

"_She'll want to start getting everything ready. Go wake them up. We'll wake her up," a twin said._

"_I'll get word to the camps. Go," Ty said. The demigods dispersed_.

* * *

Derek flipped up into sitting positon. Luke and Silena jumped from his sudden reaction.

"What's wrong?" Silena asked, standing up.

"The war. Hannah sent word to the twins and their comrades. She's attacking New York tomorrow. She's going to go for the Empire State Building. We need to alert Camp Jupiter and Chiron!" Derek exclaimed. Luke scrambled up and said, "I'll go tell Cora. You go tell Chiron."

"Got it." Derek ran off to the Big House. Silena joined him. They threw the door open and skidded to a stop. Chiron was talking to Dionysus but abruptly stopped when he saw the two demigods. Before he could even ask what was wrong, Derek spilled the story about his dream. The centaur's face grew grave. Dionysus announced he was going up to Olympus to tell the gods. They'd been dealing with hordes of monsters that hadn't been seen in centuries. Big monsters. Ones that even the gods had thought had all but disappeared.

Chiron stood up. "Derek, Silena, get some sleep. I'll announce to the campers what's happened in the morning, at breakfast. They deserve one more peaceful sleep although I'm sorry you two do not get that luxury. Does Luke know?"

"He's contacting Cora about it now," Silena said.

"I'll talk to her in the morning as well. It'll take them at least a day or two to get here if they mobilize immediately so we'll be without backup for the first battle."

"Sir, if Hannah has those fighters that took Thera on her side, we won't last long, even with how much training we've been doing," Silena remarked.

"I fear that as well, but if she only has sixteen… I'll contact our other allies. I do have a few in mind."

"Is Lupa in that list?"

Chiron nodded. "She is. I'll handle everything. You two go get some sleep. It's going to be a big day tomorrow."

* * *

**Wow two chapters in one night- you better love me. Especially considering it's four in the morning for me. This time yesterday I was running into the North Sea in a bathing suit with the rest of my school's student body (don't ask). Anyways, reviews are lovely :)**


	19. We Prep for War

**The battle begins :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected."  
****~Sun Tzu, The Art of War**

* * *

Chapter 19: We Prep for War

**Silena**

It was pretty much chaos at Camp Half-Blood with everyone prepping for the war. Argus was going to be driving the van back and forth to get supplies and demigods to Manhattan. Luke, Nicole, and Beau had been the first to go to the Empire State Building. They were working out where the best places for the demigods to stay was and where they should stockpile their weapons.

Derek helped load the vans while Silena made sure everyone was doing their job and not slacking off. She didn't have much problem with that considering all the campers wanted to have everything ready to improve their chances of winning.

A crash in the armory forced Silena to stop helping the Hephaestus cabin in the forge and go see what happened. When she entered the building, a pile of armor was on the ground with Zeke pinned underneath. She knelt down next to him, asking if he was okay.

"I'm fine, but I can't move," he replied.

"Hang on, I'll get you out." Silena took the pieces off one by one. None of them were really heavy but there was a lot so it took her five minutes to get it all off of him. He sat up, appearing a little dazed, but fine nonetheless.

"Thank you," he said. "I didn't think anyone was going to coming for a while."

"Someone would've come. We need to get all this armor to the Empire State Building. Are you hurt?"

"Physically, no. But my ego is bruised. Thought I could handle reaching that high without any help. I was wrong," Zeke admitted. He was shorter than Silena but not by much. He was only fourteen so he still had some growing to do, something she pointed out to him. "You really think I'll grow more?"

"Definitely. Come on, I'll help you out with this stuff. There's a lot and you seem to be lacking in help."

"Yeah, no one really likes to work with me. My antics from when I was little didn't make me many friends. I was a jerk."

"Weren't you the one that Bryn threatened to turn into Zeke-chini or something like that?"

He laughed. "Yeah, that was me. I wish I got to apologize to her for that. Looking back, I was a brat. I've tried changing my ways but no one's taking me seriously."

"Well consider me as someone who has. Let's get this stuff outside so Derek can take it to the van."

"If you want, I'll carry the armor if you just stack it outside. I know you're needed elsewhere though."

"I might be needed elsewhere but everywhere else has people who can fill in my shoes. You seem to need someone to talk to."

"You're really nice, has anyone ever told you that?"

"I can't remember, but thank you Zeke." The demigod nodded and headed off to the Half-Blood Hill where Derek greeted him and relieved him of the armor. For the next five hours, the demigods prepared the camp for departure. At noon, they had a quick lunch, and then filed into the vans waiting to take them to the Empire State Building. Derek sat next to Silena and she fell asleep on his shoulder the entire trip. When she woke up, they were at their destination. The group filed out and entered the building. The security guy who guarded the door to Olympus didn't hesitate to let them by. Either he knew who they were or he was really bad at his job.

The ride up to the ninety-ninth and hundredth floors took ten minutes simply because it was a long ride to get up and down while trying to get a hundred-fifty campers up there. The floor had been reserved for their special purposes. It'd all been transformed into sleeping quarters and part of it a kitchen. Some people were already sacked out and snoring in beds. Mostly the younger campers who needed more sleep than the older ones. One by one, the campers dropped off their stuff and crawled into a bed. Luke, Silena, and Derek were the last to be awake.

"Guys, I just had a thought," Luke said.

"What?" Silena queried.

"Was it just me or did New York seem like… really empty?"

Derek seemed thoughtful. "You know what, you're right. There was hardly anyone in the city and the ones that were, it seemed as if they were heading out. The Empire State Building was empty save for the front desk people and the security guard but they all acted as if they were leaving soon."

"I can explain that one," Chiron said, walking up to them. "Hannah's been planning this for a while. Compared to Kronos who put all the citizens under a sleeping spell, it caused blocks to the Titan Army. I'm assuming Hannah wants all people out of the way for multiple reasons. The first is it causes less problems for her army to march onto the Empire State Building. Second, it's more people for her to rule and torture if she wins. She must've somehow been able to get everyone out without tipping us off. The gods have been too busy fighting the monsters to notice what's going on here. Still, I do wonder how Hannah managed it. Anyway, off to bed you three go. I'll wake you up an hour before battle so we can some strategies planned."

"We can help with that," Mr. Jackson said, walking up to the group. Silena and Luke hugged their parents.

"Count us in as well," Mrs. Michaels added. Derek embraced his parents.

"Oi, don't forget us!" An unfamiliar voice demanded in mock seriousness. Silena, Luke, and Derek peered around their parents. Ten people walked into the room. Two of them Silena knew but the others she'd just heard about.

"Kids, I'd like to introduce you to Leo and Calypso Valdez, Jason and Piper Grace, Frank and Hazel Zhang, and Clarisse and Chris Rodriguez. And then you know Mr. and Mrs. Winchester," Percy introduced.

"Y-You five were part of the prophecy when defeating Gaia," Derek stammered.

"That'd be us. It's a pleasure to meet the heroes of your generation," Frank said sincerely.

"Ah, I don't know about the word 'heroes' yet. We haven't even begun that battle and it's not looking good for us," Luke admitted.

"Says the son of the guy who helped defeat Gaia after he caused her to rise because he got a nosebleed," Jason joked.

"Says the guy who got knocked out by a brick," Percy countered.

"Knock it off you two," Annabeth intervened.

"I hope you don't mind that we joined in, but we wanted to help finish what Bryn started," Mrs. Winchester said with a small smile. Mr. Drew nodded in agreement.

"She'd be proud of you both," Silena assured. "And we can use all the help we can get."

"Did you contact Nico?" Percy asked Jason.

"I did, but he didn't answer me. Will wasn't picking up either," Jason replied grimly. "I tried multiple times."

Percy's face darkened. "I hope they're okay."

"Kids, why don't you get some sleep? You have a big night ahead of you," Annabeth suggested. Luke, Silena, and Derek didn't argue. They crawled into the three remaining beds and crashed.

* * *

At nine-thirty, Chiron woke them up. Groggily they walked to their designated briefing room which was really just a room next door to the one they were sleeping in. Chiron spread out a map of Manhattan and the three demigods braced themselves against the table.

"She'll come to the surrounding areas by sea. That's the easiest way to transport her troops. Her badass soldiers will most likely come from the air. They are always riding on the pegasi," Luke observed. "We need each bridge covered. We have a hundred-fifty-six campers total so that's…"

"About 19 kids per bridge. That's nowhere near enough to hold back Hannah's army," Silena pointed out.

"Hang on, didn't your mom activate automatons in the Second Titan War? Do you still think that'd work this time? I mean there are hundreds of those things in the city. Hundreds of those that would be on our side," Derek said.

"It's worth a shot. I'll tell mom to do it. She'll remember how to do it," Silena replied. "What else? We need more ideas."

"Well, you have us," a girl quipped from the door. The three demigods turned around. It'd been almost two years since she'd last seen the girl and that'd been the day that Silena was going on her first quest.

"Thalia, I'm glad you could make it," Chiron greeted kindly.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world… again. I just realized this is the third time I've fought to save the world. I hope I'm not making this a habit. There's sixty Hunters, including myself. What does that bring your numbers up to?"

"Twenty-seven demigods per bridge. It's certainly better than nineteen," Luke noted.

"But that's still weak. According to Chiron who briefed me on everything, Hannah's army is massive along with some assassin-like demigods?"

"Pretty much. They wear black armor, not your typical bronze colored stuff. They look intimidating and their fighting makes it ten times worse. We've thought about automatons which Silena's going to talk to mom about after this. The Romans will be here tomorrow. They're getting here as fast as they can but they're not able to fly so I guess they're driving."

"They'll be here sooner than that. Part of my allies includes some, uh, centaurs. My brethren are itching to punch some monsters in the face again. I had no problem asking them to pick up the Roman campers so they'll be here soon," Chiron explained.

"How many Romans are there?" Derek queried.

"Are you talking about us?" Cora inquired, striding into the room in full battle armor. She'd always been intimidating just wearing her regular clothes, but she was seriously fierce-looking now. "We've set up on the two floors below you. There's two-hundred-and-eight of us. Does that improve your numbers?"

Silena quickly did the math in her head. "Oh my gods, yes! That gives us fifty-three demigods per bridge!"

"There's also five hundred, very antsy centaurs crashing all over the building," Cora added.

"And to think we started out with nineteen per bridge," Luke chuckled. "Now we need to separate the demigods into tunnels. The Roman and Greek tensions are still there so I think it best not to have them fight side-by-side for now. Considering there's more of you, we can split the Romans up to defend four of the tunnels as they take up half our force. That means that there will be fifty-two Romans at each bridge. Cora, I'm going to give you the Lincoln Tunnel, the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, the Manhattan Bridge, and the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. Does that sound good to you?"

"Yes. I will confer with Antony about which legions will go where. He's downstairs ordering everyone into place. What places are you going to take?"

"I can split the Hunters up to join forces with Camp Half-Blood. Some are Romans but they won't cause trouble. They just want to kick Hannah's butt," Thalia said.

"There's sixty of you so that plus the campers of Camp Half-Blood gives us two-hundred-sixteen campers. That means we need…"

"Fifty four kids per bridge," Silena calculated.

Luke nodded. "Fifty four kids. We take the four other bridges, so that means fifteen Hunters per tunnel. Ares and Dionysus cabins should take the Holland Tunnel. The Athena, Nike, and Hecate cabins should take the Brooklyn Bridge. Hermes will take the Hades and Nemesis kids to the Williamsburg Bridge. Hephaestus, Aphrodite, and Apollo cabins will take the Queensboro Bridge. Thalia, I'm going to let you separate your Hunters into groups of fifteen and place them where you think they'll be best."

"I'll go do that after we finish this discussion. Where are you three going to be fighting?"

"I figure it best if Silena, Derek, and I fly around and fight where we're needed most. Derek, if you do anything, make sure it's discrete so no one knows it was you, if you know what I'm getting at," Luke said. Derek nodded in understanding. He understood that his powers were still meant to be a secret until the right time came.

"The centaurs aren't too good with following rules. It's best to let them fight where they want to. Time to go wake the campers up," Chiron announced. "Good luck in battle."

The centaur exited the building. Cora and Thalia followed him. Derek gave Silena a kiss on the cheek and left to go help Chiron. Luke took a deep breath. Silena noticed he looked pale. Upon mentioning it, her brother only gave her a small smile and said, "It's nothing, Lena."

"Why do you insist on calling me that?" she groaned.

"Because it's my job to annoy you until the day I die," he bantered.

"Well you're doing a fantastic job. And don't you dare die anytime soon."

Luke pulled his sister into a hug. "I'll try my best."

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! I can't wait to write the next chapter- it's going to be so much fun and THE PLOT TWIST THAT IS COMIGN WITH IT! I'VE HAD THAT PART PLANNED SINCE I STARTED UNKNOWN SO YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW LONG I'VE BEEN WAITING TO WRITE IT. In other news, if you want to ask any of the main characters a question, go onto my tumblr page unknowntrilogy. tumblr. com (obviously no spaces but I know fanfiction can be a witch with a 'b' about URLs in stories) and they'll reply! Enjoy! Review!**


	20. The Battle Begins

**So this will probably be the last chapter for the next two weeks because I need to crack down on revising for exams (unfortunately). But I finish exams the first week they start which means I can start writing again ASAP and after the cliffhanger I'm going to leave y'all on (since I'm probably going to be pulling a total Rick here, if not the second biggest this book is going to give you), you're going to want me to write ASAP! Okay, without further ado, the first battle begins :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Don't play his game. Play yours."  
****~Rachel Caine, **_**Fall of Night**_

* * *

Chapter 20: The Battle Begins

**Silena**

The only sound in the room was Chiron's voice telling the campers where they were to defend. Everyone nodded and formed their groups, one by one getting onto the elevator and heading in that direction. Argus and the parents were giving kids lifts to the tunnels and bridges with their cars with the exception of Mr. and Mrs. Winchester. They weren't all that used to driving on the right side of the road. They still didn't understand why America used Fahrenheit instead of Celsius, used feet instead of meters, decided to drop the 'u' out of words like 'colour' and 'favour', but decided to go with the rest of the world by driving on the right-hand side of the road. It made no sense to them even though they laughed about it.

The pegasi that Luke, Silena, and Derek were going to be riding, along with every other pegasi from camp, were crashing on the first observation deck located on the eighty-sixth floor. Blackjack and Ace were the leaders of them all, somehow keeping everyone in check. The adults came down to the observation deck, causing Blackjack to go berserk with excitement from seeing Percy.

"Hey buddy," Percy laughed. "I'm happy to see you too."

"So for those of you who want to, grab a Pegasus to ride. Roulette is mine, just for the record," Silena said. Hearing his name, Roulette trotted up next to her, resting his head on her shoulder. Her Pegasus was white with dark brown spots, for some reason reminding her of the actual game he was named after.

"I'll take Ace," Luke said. The female Pegasus whinnied at her name. She was solid white. Sure some of the other Pegasi were white but they all had some sort of darker marking or coloring on them somewhere. Not Ace.

"I'll take Bingo," Derek said. The Pegasus was the smallest all of them. He was picked on by the other ones because of his size, so Bingo typically avoided socializing. Derek sympathized with the Pegasus. Silena had a feeling it was because Derek remembered feeling like he didn't belong because he wasn't a child of the Big Three. While that part had changed, he hadn't forgotten the feeling when he wasn't.

"Guido's mine. I'm used to flying him," Annabeth remarked.

"I'm going to use Tempest," Jason said. "I'll call him before the battle begins."

"I'm using Arion," Hazel announced.

"I don't need a Pegasus to fly," Frank laughed.

"If you see a dragon in the sky, don't worry, he's on our side," Percy added when he saw the confused look on the kids' faces.

"Leo, Piper, Penn, Michael, Clarisse, Chris, Evan, Caitlin, choose whichever one you want. We'll see you downstairs. Fight where you think you're needed most," Annabeth ordered. The Jacksons entered the elevator with the kids and went down to the lobby. Campers were being transported to their designated fighting spots. The Hephaestus cabin was handing out jars of Greek fire to cabin leaders and traps to other demigods to set for the enemies.

"Where's the Hypnos kids?" Derek asked.

"They're staying here. We can't have them falling asleep in battle. The Iris and Hebe cabins are also staying. We need people to heal and cook meals and since they're not much for fighting but still want to help, they opted to stay there," Beau explained.

"Oh crap, what about the Tyche cabin? I completely forgot to put them at a tunnel or bridge," Luke said.

"They're joining the Hermes cabin so no worries," Beau said. When two of the campers started to argue, the Aphrodite cabin leader headed over to them.

Luke, Silena, and Derek walked outside and whistled for their steeds. Ace, Roulette, and Bingo swooped down to the ground. Blackjack and Guido were there too, waiting for Percy and Annabeth. The three demigods mounted their Pegasi and shot up into the air. It was strange to see Manhattan from the back of a flying horse but Silena thoroughly enjoyed it. And she wanted to see what it looked like before it was torn up by the upcoming war.

"I'm going to fly near the bridges, see if I can see Hannah's army anywhere, particularly her assassin warriors. Silena, Derek, fly around and make sure everyone has what they need. Then get ready for battle." Luke flew off towards the east. Silena watched him go. He seemed off right now. She knew he was anxious and worried about fighting in the war but she sensed something else was bothering him.

"You okay?" Derek asked.

"Yeah, just thinking. Let's go do what Luke said," Silena answered. They veered Roulette and Bingo towards the west. Flying above the tunnels on that side, she could see the Romans forming their ranks and the Greeks scattered about, getting in position to fight. In the distance, Silena could see troops marching towards the bridge: Hannah's troops. Her stomach churned at the sight. Hundreds of monsters were coming towards the Lincoln Tunnel.

"Duh, duh, duh, we're dead," Derek said.

Silena glanced at him. "Are you quoting Hiccup from _How to Train Your Dragon_?"

"I was hoping you'd catch my reference. I say we split up. You take the Holland Tunnel. I'll take the Lincoln Tunnel. I love you, remember that," he said.

"I love you too." They parted ways. Silena flew down and joined the Ares and Dionysus cabins. Fifteen hunters were there too in their silvery outfits. Thalia wasn't among them. She probably had joined the Athena cabin considering she got along with them the best.

Just as Silena's watch hit eleven o'clock, she heard the drums in the distance. They had to be war drums. Horns joined in, followed by cries from Hannah's troops.

"Get ready!" Silena shouted, walking up to the front of the ranks to join Nicole. When the monsters reached the entrance to the bridge on the other side, she yelled, "CHARGE!"

Demigods hollered and ran towards the monsters, clashing together in the middle of the bridge. Silena met a group of _dracanae _head on. In one swipe, she took out three. However they got smart and backed up. One of them lunged at her but hurriedly recoiled. Silena missed her opportunity to kill it. But right after that _dracanae _backed away, one behind Silena lunged at her. She figured out their game pretty quickly. The next monster that lunged at her, Silena jumped to the side, already swinging her sword at the _dracanae _she knew was going to try and bite her next. The gamble paid off and that monster was destroyed. Somehow she was going to have to destroy the other three _dracanae_ though.

"Get away from my daughter!" A voice growled. In one swipe, two of the _dracanae_ were gone, leaving only a very shocked one left. Silena stabbed it and it disappeared. She turned to father. His eyes were filled with rage but he looked upon her kindly. "Sorry, I got mad when I saw you surrounded. You okay?"

"Better now. Thank you!" she said.

"Come on, let's go kick some monster butts!" Percy hollered and ran through the monsters with his sword above his head. Silena couldn't help but laugh at her father, but she followed nonetheless.

* * *

The battle had been raging on for three hours when Luke frantically entered Silena's thoughts saying: _I need your help! We're getting pushed back at the Queens-Midtown Tunnel- we're almost to the Empire State Building! Derek's here but we could really use your help!_

_I'm on my way!_ Silena replied. She whistled for Roulette who landed immediately next to her. In a few seconds, Silena was flying as fast as she could to her brother. The streets were strangely empty until she came to the intersection of 5th and 34th street. Luke and Derek were at the front of the battle, slashing their way through the monsters but they kept getting pushed back. If they got pushed back any farther, the monsters would be at the Empire State Building. Silena leapt off of Roulette, landing next to her brother.

"Glad you could join us!" Luke yelled, kicking a _telekhine_ in the stomach. It stunned the monster, giving Luke time to cut its head off. "This bridge had the biggest force, probably because it's closest to the Empire State building. We've already lost a few demigods… I got here when they were at Lexington and 34th. Derek got tere soon after. We tried to hold them back but they keep coming out of nowhere. They're like Hydra: take down one head, two more grow back."

"Do you have any Greek fire left?" Silena asked.

"No. I used that right when I got here. It bought us about ten minutes because it killed so many but then reinforcements came. Duck!" Silena cowered briefly to the ground while Luke swung his sword above her head, decapitating whatever it was that had been behind her.

"Where are the automatons?" She queried, slashing through a rank of more _telekhines_.

"At other bridges. Mom's trying to get them here since they apparently only listen to her since she's the one who activated them but they're pretty intent on destroying the enemies that they're fighting now. We had a few gargoyles flying around and destroying enemies but they got taken down."

"We need to-" Silena never finished her sentence. A lightning bolt struck the ground between her and the monster she was about to attack. It blew her off her feet and back about a yard. The bolt hadn't meant to kill or injure, but it sure did shock her. Looking over, she saw that her brother and boyfriend and multiple other demigods were in the same predicament. The ones who hadn't been affected ran up to the ones that were. Facing back towards Hannah's army, Silena noticed they'd been hit too. They were looking around in a daze. When one tried to charge at the demigods, another bolt of lightning struck the ground in front of him, throwing him back. Both armies fell silent. If Silena listened closely enough, she could hear the battles raging at the other tunnels but only barely. When the closest monster looked up in the direction of the Empire State Building and grinned, Silena felt weak. She had a feeling of what was behind her but it wasn't like she wanted to confirm it. However, when she saw Luke and Derek standing up, she did so as well. All the demigods were looking up at the Empire State Building where seven figures, dressed in black armor, were on horseback, hovering in the air on solid black pegasi. Two of the riders blew war horns twice and then fell silent. The riders disappeared briefly behind the building only to reappear a few seconds later, this time with over a hundred riders flying down towards the demigods, with the lead rider pointing their sword directly at Luke.

* * *

**Luke**

Luke had been wondering where Hannah's freaky assassin warriors were, silently hoping they wouldn't show up. However, when they did, he was glad to only see seven. That happiness rapidly decreased when he saw their numbers. They had well over one hundred warriors. What really took the cake was their leader who was riding towards the ground at a breakneck speed with their sword aimed straight at Luke's heart. He readied his shield and sword, waiting for the impending attack. Some of the riders drew their bows and fired arrows. Either their archery was seriously horrible, or they'd purposefully shot over the demigods and into the ranks of monsters. The leader jumped off their Pegasus. Luke ducked as he thought they were aiming for him, but they simply flipped over Luke in front of the closest monsters. In one swift move, they eliminated five monsters. The arrows that had been fired exploded when they hit the ground, instantly vaporizing any monsters nearby. Silena, Derek, Luke, and the Romans stood in stunned silence as half the ninja warrior assassins leapt off their rides and onto the ground, scattering the ranks of monsters. Luke had never seen such fierce fighters. And while the other demigods were terrifying in the fighting style, their leader couldn't be touched. Their fighting style was unprecedented. The minute the person finished one monster, they were already onto the next. Soon the monsters were running away but that did not halt the assassin-like demigods from continuing to fire arrows and pretty much slaughter Hannah's army. Luke and the other demigods followed the newcomers when they were halfway down 34th street. They continued following when the monsters scrambled for the entrance to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. The leader halted their army, kneeled, and drew their bow. Eight soldiers followed in suit while the others stood behind them with the swords and bows ready in case any other attackers appeared. When all the monsters had entered the tunnel, the assassin demigods fired their arrows. At first Luke wondered why they'd even fired at all because the arrows weren't close to hitting any monsters. Then the explosions took place and the tunnels collapsed, essentially sealing off that route for the enemy army to come through.

"Archers, fly to the other entrances and exits of this tunnel and seal them off with more explosive arrows and then join your groups where-" the commander was interrupted by the sounds of horns.

"What is that?" a kid asked.

"War horns calling off the attack. Congratulations everyone, you survived your first battle," a girl said, taking off her helmet. Silena held back a startled gasp. Hallie ran her hands through her hair. "Sorry for the dramatic, late entrance. We were trying to figure out where we were needed most. Y'all okay?"

"Told you that you could trust us, Jackson," a guy said, taking off his helmet. Silena did a double-take when she saw the Winchester twins grinning at them.

"Wait, you were on our side the whole time?" Luke demanded.

"Yep. Sorry we couldn't tell you. We needed to throw suspicion off of us as much as we could. Didn't want to tip Hannah off about our ultimate plan," a twin said.

"Looks like it turned out pretty well. Seems we had everyone fooled. Oh, by the way, I'm Bradley." He looked around. "You lost campers?"

Luke nodded solemnly. "Yeah, mostly in the tunnel though."

"Leave that to me," Hallie said. "Vanessa, Prerana, Ana, with me. We're going to go get the bodies. How many do you think there were?"

"Five or six at most. It wasn't a lot but…" Derek trailed off.

"Y'all were outnumbered. Don't blame that on yourselves. We'll be back," she assured. Grabbing onto each other's hands, the four girls vanished into thin air.

* * *

**Silena**

"Soldiers, fly to your designated spots and help clean up, heal the wounded, and carry the dead back to the Empire State Building," a girl called out. She was flying high above the rest of them. Her voice oozed authority and Silena figured that was their ultimate leader. Dark brown hair fell out under her black helmet. Instantly Silena though it was the mysterious Penn, but she pushed that thought out of her head almost as fast as it'd come. Penn was Bryn, and Bryn was dead. So who was she?

However, she pushed all thoughts about the mystery leader out of her head and focused on helping the campers walk back to the Empire State Building. Derek was limping but when she asked him about it, he simply told her he twisted his ankle a little. Luke appeared unscathed.

Upon arriving to their destination, the other campers seemed to be in shock and awe at the black-armored warriors who had come to their rescue.

"People who need their injuries to be looked at by a healer, stay down here. For those of you who just need some ambrosia or nectar, go upstairs to the floor you are staying on. Some of my comrades will be up there to greet you with what you need!" Scott shouted. Surprisingly, everyone listened to him and were rather orderly about it.

"Where's mom and dad?" Luke asked.

"Don't worry, your parents are meeting Chiron upstairs. He said he needed to talk to them in private," a hulking guy said. He was wearing black armor. His blonde hair was pulled back into a pony tail.

"Who are you?"

"Name's Thor. I'm a son of Iris. I overheard what you were asking. That's all," the guy responded.

"Your name is Thor?" Luke said.

"Yes."

"As in the Norse god of thunder?"

"Yes."

"Please tell me you're a son of Zeus."

"No. That would be the Winchesters. I must get back to helping." Thor walked off, leaving Luke grinning like a little kid.

"I've never met a guy named Thor," he remarked.

"Well now you have. We should head upstairs, help out with the wounded," Derek said. The other two agreed. They made their way up to the ninety-ninth floor. It was pretty crowded which made Silena happy. That meant not too many campers had been injured severely, or worse, killed.

"Luke, we need to use the room next door as something other than a briefing room. We've chosen to put the severely wounded in there so they're closer to the ambrosia and nectar. Are you okay with that?" Nicole asked, suddenly appearing in front of the trio.

"Yeah, we'll move a few floors down. How are you?" Luke queried.

"Unhurt but worn out. I can't wait to go to sleep." With that, she left them alone.

"I'll go four floors down and find a good room to set up for a briefing room and then move our stuff down there. Why don't you two stay up here and help?" Derek suggested. Silena and Luke agreed. They went about talking to campers, asking what they needed. Most wanted food or water, some hadn't received nectar or ambrosia yet. The siblings made sure that those who needed the latter two got them as soon as possible.

Two hours later, most of the campers were asleep. Those who weren't were finishing off their meal. Luke collapsed into his bed but while his eyes were closed, Silena knew he wasn't asleep. Wondering how Derek was doing, she got up and went to the ninety-fifth floor. It was a bunch of office rooms on this floor so Silena was going to have a hard time figuring out which one Derek was using. She started walking down the corridor, opening each door and poking her head in. All the rooms she entered were dark. She turned the corner just in time to see a black-armored soldier walk into one of the rooms. Noticing that no other sounds were coming from any other rooms, Silena assumed the warrior was alone. She started walking towards them room but broke out into a run when she heard a startled cry. When she skidded to a halt in front of the doorway, Silena saw Derek with his knee in the warrior's back and his arm wrapped around the girl's neck. The girl was thrashing and trying to pry his arm away from her neck but it wasn't doing much good. The girl's terror-filled eyes rested on Silena.

"Si-Silena… please help me… pl-please help," the girl croaked.

Recognition hit the Jackson girl like a ton of bricks. She ordered, "Derek let her go." When he didn't listen and only gave her a 'what the hell' expression, she barked, "Let her go!"

Derek released his hold on the warrior who fell to the ground on all fours in a coughing fit.

"What in Hades' name are you thinking Silena?" Derek questioned.

"I was thinking that I didn't want her choked to death!" she snapped. Kneeling next to the girl, she asked, "You okay?"

After coughing, the girl replied, "I'll live. I forgot how strong Derek was. It's been a while."

"What do you mean you forgot how strong I was? Do I know you?" he demanded.

The girl nodded and leaned against the sofa in the room. She slowly pulled off her helmet. While Silena had thought it was her when the girl had pleaded with her to get Derek to stop, to actually realize it was true, that was a whole other experience.

Derek had turned ashen, so white to the point Silena thought he was going to pass out. The girl ran her hand through her long blonde hair before massaging her neck. Turning to Derek, she said, "I'm sorry I frightened you. I guess coming into the room unannounced in full armor was a bad idea." When he didn't say anything back, she added, "Derek, are you all right?"

All he could do was shake his head and say, "Bryn?"

* * *

**BRYN IS BACK SHE'S BACK I'M SO HAPPY TO HAVE HER BACK! It's weird to be writing about her again but I'm glad I am! And I know you Lukyn shippers are probably glad to have her back as well :P Anywho, please review and I'm sorry in advance if I don't get any more chapters up for a while although I did warn you I was going to pull a Rick and leave you on a cliffhanger…**


	21. The Boys Flip Out

**Enjooooooy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**No one can hate you with more intensity than someone who used to love you."  
**_**~Blood of Olympus  
**_

* * *

Chapter 21: The Boys Flip Out

**Silena**

"Hi?" Bryn said hesitantly. It was obvious to Silena that Bryn had no idea how to react to Derek.

"Hi? You've been dead to us for a year and all you say is 'hi'? What the hell Bryn?" he snapped, standing up. She stayed sitting on the ground, looking up at him.

"I came here to talk to you Derek, specifically you. I… I wasn't planning on seeing anyone else besides you. No offense Silena," she added hastily.

"None taken," Silena said. "What did you want to tell him?"

"I don't want to hear. No reason is good enough to excuse you from letting the three of us think you were dead for a whole damn year. If Silena wants to listen to your pathetic excuse then she can go ahead but count me out," he growled.

"Derek, please just listen, it's important-"

"No! You've been lying to us this entire time. I can't trust you anymore. I'll trust you to fight on our side but otherwise, forget it." The son of Hades started walking off. Bryn scrambled up and said, "You're right and I don't deserve to ask you this but don't tell Luke about me being here."

"Don't worry, I'm not. He's finally moving past your death. We don't need to ruin that."

"Derek!" Silena chastised. "Bryn is your best friend. Why are you acting like this?"

"It's okay… I get where he's coming from. I kind of expected it. He is a son of Hades after all. They typically hold grudges," Bryn said softly.

Derek whirled around angrily. "You knew about that?! For how long?!"

"I found out after I 'died'. I tried to get you to see it, mainly by provoking you," she admitted. "That's how most demigods find out their powers, when their angry or frustrated."

"So that whole thing at Lupa's, because Penn _was_ you, right?" Bryn nodded. "So that whole thing at Lupa's was to provoke me?"

"I wasn't expecting you to come when I was picking up my brothers but I told them about you right before you got there. I told them how I needed to provoke you somehow to try and bring out your powers. I guess my one of my brothers did that."

"You- you have a lot of nerve pulling something like that," Derek laughed humorlessly.

"Who has a lot of nerve?" Luke asked. He was rubbing his eyes. "What's all the arguing about? I felt Silena get like… really excited or anxious. I couldn't tell the difference."

Bryn had gone rigid next to Silena. The daughter of Zeus couldn't take her eyes off Luke who hadn't seemed to notice she was there yet.

"Uh, Silena and I were just-" Derek began. Silena held a smug smile back. No matter how upset Derek was at Bryn, he was still trying to do as she wanted, meaning trying to prevent Luke from finding out Bryn was there even though she was barely six feet away from him.

"Guys, save the couple arguments for after the war because speaking of a war, we have one to fight tomorrow and-" Luke trailed off when he saw who was standing next to his sister. Bryn, still seeming paralyzed, said nothing. Luke blinked multiple times and actually took a step back.

"Luke?" Silena said hesitantly, taking a step towards him. Hearing her voice seemed to snap him out of his stupor.

"What are you doing here?" Luke asked emotionlessly.

"I-I came here to talk. To Derek," she stammered quietly.

"And what? Just leave me and Silena to continue to think you were dead? As if you hadn't made us think you died not only once, but _twice_? What the hell were you thinking Bryn? What sane person does that to their friends? What person lets their best friends think they're dead for a whole year without so much as a word and what's more, is letting them think you're serving the person they're trying to defeat? And the lies, Bryn. You told me on _multiple occasions _that you were dead. Well you seem pretty damn alive to me right now. You don't do that Bryn! You don't do that to people that care about you! We were like your family for the gods' sake and I know you have your actual family now but that shouldn't change a thing!" Luke ranted.

"Luke I-" Bryn began but Luke cut her off.

"What's worse is that I blamed myself for your death while you've been alive and well this entire time. I'm not sure what's worse, the fact that you lied straight to all of our faces or had the ability to leave us like it was nothing. You were able to leave us alone for a year, and the _only_ reason you showed up near us was because you needed us alive for whatever reason. Whatever your reason is for leaving, I don't want to hear. I don't care why you left anymore. The only thing I care about is winning this war and making sure my family and friends make it out of this alive. And you don't belong in either of those categories anymore." With that, Luke stalked out the door. Derek briefly glanced at the two girls before following. Silena simply stood in shock, unable to believe her brother's outburst. She thought he'd be so happy to see Bryn again but that… that was pure anger.

Silena was brought out of her thoughts by Bryn sitting down on a chair, hands clasped in front of her. She bashfully looked at Silena and questioned, "Are you going to yell at me too?"

"No. If I was going to yell at you, I would've done it by now. And unlike those two buffoons, I believe you do have a good reason about why you did all what you did," Silena said, sitting next to her old friend.

"Why do you believe anything I have to say? Luke and Derek were right. I lied to all of you."

"Because I remember something Derek told me a couple years ago. On our first quest as a group. You and I were still… rocky in our friendship. He and I were at the rock-climbing wall and he told me that you will do what you think is best for your friends, whether you're right or not. That even if it killed you, you'd do it. With everything going on, I think Derek's forgotten that but he'll come around and so will Luke. In the meantime, you have me, and I'm all ears.

Bryn smiled weakly. "Promise to keep this a secret until I say you can spill the jeans?"

"You mean beans?"

"Ever since I've been hanging out with my brothers, I swear I've forgotten so many American idioms."

"Well no matter what I promise I'll keep it a secret."

"Then let's start with this ring I'm wearing."

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! Didn't think I'd get that done so fast but you won't be finding out Bryn's story for another few chapters :) Speaking of her story, once this story is done, I'll be starting UnTouchable which is all about Bryn and her sassy comrades while she's 'dead' to Luke and Silena. Review please :)**


	22. We Learn the Great Prophecy

**I've come to honestly believe that 'studying' is seriously just a contraction of 'student dying'. Studying for finals is kicking my poor ass. I think I've honestly forgotten how to study. Anywho, for those of you in school, hope studying for your upcoming exams is going much better than mine :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**As I grew up, one of my strongest allies has been my sister."  
****~Patti Smith**

* * *

Chapter 22: We Learn the Great Prophecy

**Derek**

The rage had subsided soon after his argument with Bryn, if he could even call it an argument considering he hadn't really let her speak. Maybe what had made his anger subside was the shock that Luke had ranted at her too. Of all people, Derek thought Luke would be the happiest to see Bryn alive and well, but he saw where the Jackson boy was coming from.

However, the willingness to forgive her was still nowhere to be found within him. How Silena managed to when she probably had the rockiest relationship with Bryn of the group was beyond him. Sure, curiosity was gnawing at him to find out why she had left them, but she'd been right: Hades' kids hold grudges, and it would take a lot to change that today.

Derek entered their new briefing room again. Bryn wasn't there anymore but he figured she'd be coming back to discuss tactics. Luke was there though and was staring intently at the map of Manhattan below him.

"Hey, where's Silena?" Luke asked.

"She's not too happy with me after… earlier," Derek explained, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Because you yelled at Bryn?"

"Yeah. She's probably not too happy with you either." There was a tic in Luke's jaw before he said, "I don't know why I yelled. I'm… thrilled she's alive, don't get me wrong. But to let us think she was dead for a year, lying to us, what excuse could ever be good enough to explain all that?"

"I don't know," Derek admitted. The boys dropped the subject to tackle one they knew they could probably answer. A few minutes later, Silena walked in. Instantly her boyfriend noticed how exhausted she'd looked, as if she'd gotten no sleep. Luke picked up on it too as he inquired, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Fine. Both of you behave when Bryn, the twins, and Hallie get here," Silena warned, giving them a glare that reminded Derek so much of Annabeth it was scary.

"I'm here!" Hallie exclaimed, walking into the room. Her hair was tied back into a pony tail and she wore her army's signature black armor, but other than that, she appeared very… unthreatening. Or at least for a few moments she did. Her eyes settled on Derek and Luke as she said, "Bryn, Bradley, and Brady will be here soon. They're finishing up some business."

"What business could they possibly have?" Luke queried. "If we're going to be allies, I think the three of us deserve to know."

Hallie, while she didn't snap, certainly did not hide the contempt in her voice when she replied, "Would you trust her if she told you?"

"Sorry we're late. Taking care of some battle plans," Bryn announced, striding into the room. Her brothers were right behind her. The minute they saw Luke, their eyes turned murderous.

"What did you say-" one began.

"To our sister?" the other finished.

"That's none of your business," Luke said.

"It is our damn business! She's our sister!" the first one snapped. Both boys lunged at the Jackson boy but Hallie and Bryn jumped in front of them, holding the two boys back.

"Brady! Bradley! Knock it off!" Bryn commanded.

"After everything you've been through with them, he didn't even give you a chance to explain! Why should we not strangle him?" Brady argued, still trying to go after Luke.

"Because he's not worth it," she said simply. "Now cool off. We have a war to fight here."

Derek glanced over at Luke, whose stare had shifted from the twins to Bryn. There was no mistake of the hurt on his face. But rather than saying anything, Luke simply put his pen back in his pocket and braced himself against the table. He was tense though, anyone and everyone could see it.

"So what's the plan?" Hallie asked, standing next to Derek. Bradley and Brady flanked Bryn who braced herself against the table opposite Luke, practically mirroring him.

"Hannah knows that we're working for the gods now so that element of surprise is gone. We need a new one, one she won't expect," Bryn said, talking more to herself than anyone else. "The Queens-Midtown Tunnel is blocked off so we'll need to reassemble the Roman troops but I'll leave that to Cora. She's already working on it with Antony."

"Wait, Cora knows you're alive?" Luke stated

"She found out a few hours ago. She took it quite well, me being alive and my reason and all. I think she's splitting the kids into three more groups, roughly. Obviously fifty-two kids isn't divisible by three so one team will be a demigod or two short. But we need to focus on our surprise."

"What were you thinking?" Bradley inquired.

"Plan Cerberus."

"Cerberus? I thought Adler was first?" Brady remarked.

"No, not yet. Besides, we're missing three key elements for that plan right now."

"Right."

"Are they speaking English?" Derek whispered to Luke. The latter replied with, "Certainly not Russian."

"What's plan Cerberus?" Silena asked.

"With the name Cerberus, the guard dog of the Underworld, I'm going to assume it's dealing with the two children of Hades present," Derek said.

"You'd be right. Hannah knows about me, but she doesn't know about you being a son of Hades, which we can use to our advantage," Hallie said.

"What exactly are we going to do?"

"Part of it involves creating a sinkhole in New York City. We should do so near the Queensboro Bridge or the Lincoln tunnel."

"Why not both? It'll force the monsters to go around the sink hole, giving our troops to fire them before they cross," Luke suggested.

"Exactly. Hallie, Derek you two decide which place you want to take. It should be done simultaneously to give our troops a better chance of surviving this battle. We should also pair up. Hallie, Bradley, you two go together. Silena, would you mind working with Brady?" Bryn asked softly. "I know you don't know him well but-"

"Count me in. Brady, we should take a bridge. I can control water after all. I can maybe sweep a few monsters off with a wave or something," Silena said with a grin.

"I like your style," he laughed.

"Derek, Luke, you two work together. I'd put you with my brothers but that altercation from a few minutes ago has made me think otherwise," Bryn said.

"What about you? You said we should pair up. You're alone," Luke pointed out.

Without looking at him, she replied, "And alone is how I'll stay. I've gotten good at fighting alone this past year."

"No, it's not safe," Luke protested.

"And you care about my safety since when?" she responded, still staring at the map.

He hesitated in his answer. Whether that was because the twins were staring at him murderously or because he genuinely didn't know what to say, Derek didn't know. "You're another commander, and a good one. I'm watching out for my investment."

"And what exactly have you invested in me? Because it's certainly not trust," Bryn remarked stoically.

"Faith in your fighting. There's no denying you're a phenomenal fighter. We need you," he told her.

"I admire the sentiment but that's not changing the fact that I'm fighting alone."

"You either fight with me and Derek or you don't fight at all then. I'm not letting you go out there alone."

"I'm fully capable of handling myself out there. I've proved that on multiple occasions."

"I'm agreeing with Luke on this one. You shouldn't be by yourself out there," Derek joined in. "I know we're not getting along but sacrifices need to be made in war."

At this, Bryn's head snapped up. "What did you say about sacrifices?"

"That sacrifices need to be made in war?" he repeated, looking at her curiously.

"I don't think they've heard the Great Prophecy," Hallie whispered.

"What prophecy?" Silena asked.

"That answers that. Who wants to be the one to repeat it?" Brady queried, rocking back and forth on his heels.

Bryn took a deep breath before:

"_Seven children of the Big Three,_

_Will fight for the free._

_A sacrifice above all,_

_For which one must fall._

_To defeat Hell,_

_Four must they dispel."_

Silence fell on the room. No one wanted to talk about the fourth line which pretty much one of them in the room was going to die.

"That doesn't sound very… Great Prophecy. I mean you think it'd be longer," Luke remarked. His sister rolled her eyes.

"Why did Chiron not tell us this?" Silena questioned, finally breaking the silence.

"Sometimes it's not always a good thing to know your future," Bryn replied gently. "The prophecy pretty much says one of us is going to die. He most likely didn't want you three fretting about it."

"Now the question is: which one of us is going to die?"

"Maybe it's talking about Hannah," Bradley suggested. When everyone gave him dubious stares, he muttered, "Just trying to lighten the mood."

"Now you see why I… acted the way I did when you said sacrifices. It reminded me of the line in the prophecy, that's all."

"Sacrifice or not, you're still not going out there by yourself. You forget I knew you since we were eight years old. You wanted the change in topic to make everyone forget that Luke and I were saying that we weren't going to let you fight by yourself," Derek pointed out.

"And I have a promise to keep to you Bryn. Friends or not, I told you I'd protect you to the best of my ability," Luke added. "And now that you're back, I can."

"Then let me relieve you of that promise," Bryn responded angrily.

Bradley sighed. "Sis, I hate to say this but these two Greeks are right."

The daughter of Zeus had a staring contest with her brothers, having an obvious silent conversation, one that she must've been losing or not been agreeing with by the way she was fiddling with her thumbs and the multiple tics in her jaw.

"She'll agree if she gets to call the shots," Brady finally said.

"And if you say I've made some crappy calls recently-" she began.

"We're not," Derek interrupted. "And as long as the shots you call don't get yourself killed, then yes, you can call the shots."

"Fine. Be ready in thirty minutes. I need to go talk to my troops, get them sorted out. We'll meet on the observation deck." Bryn left the room without another word. Brady, Bradley, and Hallie were quick to follow. Luke told Derek and Silena he was going to go put on his armor, quickly leaving the room.

"So, do you still love me?" Derek asked, leaning against the wall while Silena made some marks on the map.

"Yes. Why?" she replied.

"First of all, I know you're mad at how I talked to Bryn when I first found out she was alive although I am glad you stopped me from killing her. Second, you haven't really spoken to me since then," he remarked.

"It's… not you. Look, two years ago you told me that Bryn would do anything she thought was best for the people she loved, whether she right in her decision or not and whether it killed her or not. That's why I found out her reason about why she left and it's bad, because I remember what you said. Her reason… it's not bad as in it's not excusable because I get it, I totally get it, it's that its… I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone else and I'm going to keep that and I know that her brothers and Hallie know but I need someone else to know what it is because I need someone I'm close with to understand this. I'm not strong enough to deal with this by myself." By now Silena was choking in her speech. Derek pulled her into a hug. "She refuses to tell Luke because after the way he talked to her, she thinks he won't care about what her reason is and nothing I said could convince her that he would; I know he would because it's her. I know why he blew up at her but I also know that he still loves her and that he would want to know. Then she's terrified that you hate her, that she pushed you too far this time because she knows she's never been the easiest person to be friends with but you or Luke, one of you needs to talk to her because you two were closer to her than I was. I know talking to me helped her but she was closest to you two, so she needs one of you to hear her out so she can believe that at least one of you doesn't hate her."

"Does-does she really think that I hate her?" Derek asked, in shock.

Silena nodded, wiping tears off her face. "Like I said Bryn thinks she pushed you too far this time."

"You go get ready for battle. I'll go see Bryn and talk to her, okay?" Silena nodded again. After giving him a kiss, she went upstairs to go get ready. Derek tried to figure out where Bryn would be but nothing was coming to him. He didn't even know where her army was staying. But he'd had a strong bond with her before, so strong that they'd actually been able to talk in their minds to each other. Perhaps the two had been separated for a year, but maybe that bond still existed strongly enough that he could reach her, or at least figure out where she was. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on Bryn, trying as hard as he could to contact her.

"Derek?" He opened his eyes to find Bryn holding her sword as his throat but appearing quite perplexed as to why he was in her room. He must've shadow-travelled without realizing it…

"I'm not going to kill you, I swear," he promised, holding up his hands. I just came to talk."

"Last time we talked, you yelled at me and said you didn't trust me. Why do you suddenly want to talk now?" she inquired, lowering her sword. Bryn didn't sound angry, or even snappish, just cautious.

"A couple of reasons. One, Silena's a wreck and while she didn't tell me what you told her, she told me a couple things that lead into my next reason. My second reason is that she reminded me of something I told her a couple years ago about you. Third, she said you thought I hated you, or pushed me too far this time." He took a few steps towards her. "Do you really think I could ever hate you?"

Bryn bit her lip. "What I did to you, to Luke, to Silena, it… it was the hardest thing I've ever done. So when you yelled at me and when I saw the look in your eyes, yes, I thought you hated me. If you don't hate me, and I'm also assuming I haven't pushed you too far this time, then I'm afraid- no I'm _terrified _that if you find out what I've done, what I've really done, that it really will push you too far this time and I don't know if I can handle losing you to that. I've already lost so much of you… what did you tell Silena about me?"

"I told her that you will do whatever you think is best for your friends whether it kills you or not and whether you're right or not. When she reminded me of that, I remembered how fiercely loyal you are which told me whatever reason you have for leaving, it's a good one. And I'm all ears. I don't hate you Bryn. Biologically, we are not siblings, but you're still my sister and I will always see you as my sister."

"You might… want to take a seat. Silena practically collapsed when she listened."

"I'll take your word."

"Really?"

Derek smiled. "I trust you."

* * *

**Now Derek is about to find out. Funnily enough, none of you know still although maybe some of you might be figuring it out. Review please :)**


	23. I Call Bull

**Poor Luke- he's the only one who doesn't know Bryn's secret now. Enjoy the next chapter :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Love is giving someone the power to destroy you…but trusting them not to."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 23: I'm Calling Bull

**Luke**

As the Jackson siblings were double-checking with all the Pegasi to make sure they were ready for war, Derek and Bryn showed up, hand-in-hand. The former broke away and practically ran up to Silena, pulling her into a hug. Bryn watched them wistfully until she saw Luke staring at her. Instantly she snapped into soldier mode, any previous emotion in her face gone. He still hadn't forgotten what she'd said to her brothers when they'd tried to attack him: _he isn't worth it_. What was he not worth? Was he not worth the energy? Was he not worth fighting? Was he not worth the effort? The more he thought it about it, the more it hurt. But is also _angered _him. For some unfathomable reason, it angered him.

"Everyone ready?" Bryn asked, hopping onto her steed: King. King had a mouth on him but Luke wasn't going to mention it to anyone. It was more that the Pegasus made sarcastic remarks about practically everything, like: _Why does Death Boy look like death? How on earth do mortals not see the massive cloud hanging above their city with ridiculously, tantrum-prone gods? Why is it always Zeus's kids that get the bad end of the bargain? Why does blonde superman need a Pegasus when he can fly everywhere? And for that matter, why does Bryn? What are you looking at Kelp Head?_

Luke stopped listening to King's thoughts after that last comment.

"Where's Hallie and the twins?" Silena asked.

"Well I'm here, I don't know about the other two. Probably making out," a twin, who must've been Brady, said.

"We're here," Hallie announced, popping up in the middle of the room with Bradley next to her.

"Great. Get on your horses. We have a war to fight," Bryn told them. Her comrades obeyed.

"All right, attack the designated tunnel and bridge first. Derek, Luke, and I have the Queensboro Bridge. Hallie, Bradley, you take the Lincoln Tunnel. Got it?"

Everyone nodded and took off into the night sky. Luke could see the Greek and Roman campers trudging to their designated destinations.

"Bryn, I have a question," Derek said. "If you can fly, why use a Pegasus?"

"Because flying takes it out of me. I'm better off using my power for skewering my enemies with lightning bolts," she replied.

Luke couldn't help himself. "Am I on that list or am I not worth it?"

"There are more important enemies right now," Bryn answered.

"Oh so I'm an enemy?"

"It's not like we're friends. You made that explicitly clear."

"Guys, I know the tensions between you are high, but now is not the time to be working those out," Derek intervened.

"I should've worked by myself," Bryn muttered.

"We're not starting this again," Derek said firmly. Silence ensued as the three of them flew towards the Queensboro Bridge. Luke could feel his heart hammering as he flew to battle for a second time. Would he survive this fight? Would Silena? Derek? Bryn? His parents? The twins? Hallie? His family? The thought of losing any single one of them was practically unbearable, which only made it worse when he wondered what their reactions would be when he died from is curse because it's not like he'd be there to see them. However, it's not like they knew about the curse. Luke never told them; the only one who knew was Bryn but she apparently hadn't told any of them or else he would've had his ear chewed off by now either by his parents or sister.

As they approached the Queensboro Bridge, Bryn came to a halt above its entrance. The Hephaestus, Apollo, and Aphrodite cabins stood on guard below, their weapons at the ready.

"Derek, on my word, make the sink hole," Bryn said. He nodded. Luke shouted for the cabins to hold their positions. A few of them gave him strange looks but listened. Hannah's army charged down the bridge with their weapons raised above their hands. The campers below shifted uneasily.

"Uh, Bryn, I think it'd be a good time to create that sinkhole," Derek said.

"Hold, Derek," she said, even though the monsters were practically five hundred yards away. Just as the monsters stepped foot right at the bridge entrance, Bryn shouted, "Now!"

A massive sink hole, twenty feet deep and a hundred feet wide. Monsters plummeted down one by one. Many skidded to a halt before they fell but their allies behind them weren't able to stop, crashing into them and going down. Derek had paled from the effort but seemed to be holding up.

"Derek, I need you to do one more thing," Bryn said. "If you're up to it."

"What is it?"

"Throw fire at the sink hole."

"You want me to set them on fire? Bryn, what if there are demigods in there?"

"There's not. I know Hannah's army like the back of my hand. That's one of the things I did while I was away. The only demigods she had were the ones in my army and she doesn't have them anymore. If you won't do it, I'll find a way to do it myself. I'm not going to force you."

Derek shook his head. "No, I can do it."

The son of Hades thrust his hands out towards the sink hole, sending massive fireballs in its direction. The flames hit the monsters. The Camp Half-Blood campers shielded themselves from the heat with the shields as the fire exploded, taking with it well over a hundred monsters in one go. Bryn dove down to the ground, leaping off her Pegasus. Luke and Derek followed her. They stood next to Beau who was firing arrows at the monsters behind the sink hole who were still trying to find a way across without being incinerated.

"Derek, you got something you want to tell us?" Beau asked casually.

"You mean being a son of Hades?" Derek countered.

"Knew there was something special about you. Look, we seem to have it covered here for now. Go see if any of the other campers need help. Maybe come check on us later but I think you pretty much prevented the monsters from coming over now."

"Contact us if you need help. I'll get here as fast as I can," Derek promised. The three demigods got back onto their Pegasi and flew off. They double-checked to make sure the Lincoln Tunnel was keeping out invaders, which much to their relief it was. The closest battle to them was the Holland Tunnel where the Ares and Dionysus cabins were. Ares had had a _lot _of children, whereas Dionysus only had three. However, there were also the fifteen Hunters, some of Bryn's forces, and a bunch of centaurs there.

The three demigods joined the battle on the ground. King, Bingo, and Ace flew up to the closest building, waiting for their riders to call them down again. Immediately a bolt of lightning struck straight through the monsters, destroying about ten and scattering the rest.

"Nice of you to join us!" Nicole yelled, impaling a cyclops with a spear. "Who's the kid of Zeus?"

"You don't need to know!" Bryn hollered, running off to join her troops.

"You and your minions just randomly showed up and are kicking these monsters butts and you expect me to just trust that I don't need to know who you are?!" Nicole argued.

"Yes! I do! It's just a technicality!"

"Technicality my-" Luke never heard the end of her sentence due to the sound of metal poles snapping. Wires flew out and grabbed onto monsters by their hands, feet, waists, and more. The wires smashed the monsters into the ground, into buildings, into the tunnel wall, and into other monsters.

"Derek you have a lot of explaining to do after this war!" Nicole remarked.

"That seems to be the norm right now," he muttered. "And just so you know, I have no idea how I'm doing this."

"You got the whole package with your son of Hades package didn't you?" Bryn laughed. "Come on, let's blast these guys back to where they came from."

Luke followed Bryn into the fray where the roughest fighting was. He was a leader and he wasn't going to cower in the back just so he could have a better chance of surviving. He was going to die anyway, so better to die fighting than because of the curse.

He slashed his way through Hannah's ranks with Bryn by his side. Despite all that was going on between them, he had to admit it felt good to be fighting next to her again. They'd always been in sync when they fought. They'd always had each other's backs, and even a year hadn't changed that between them. Even the arguing and cold-shoulder treatment they were giving each other didn't change that. If one monster was about to kill Bryn from the back, Luke would strike it down before it came within two feet from her. An empousa tried to seduce Luke into surrendering and she almost had him had Bryn not sliced the donkey-legged vampire's head off.

"Thank you for that," he said.

"That's two you owe me now," she replied.

"We still keeping track on that are we now?"

Bryn tactfully changed the subject when she and Luke ended up back to back with monsters surrounding them in a circle. As she sent some lightning bolts into the group of monsters, she asked, "How are we going to get out of this one?"

Luke racked his brain. All he could think of was wishing he had water to create some havoc. Then his conscience said: _You're under the Hudson River you idiot. There's water everywhere!_

"I have a plan but it's stupid," Luke said.

"That's nothing new."

"Get the campers away from the entrance and out of the tunnel. Send a message to Derek or something." Bryn was silent for a few moments. Luke protected her, killing any monster that tried to attack her or him.

"Okay, every one of ours is out. Now what?"

"Do you trust me?"

She hesitated. "Yes."

It hurt that her trust in him had faltered but he knew why, so ignoring the pain, he wrapped his arms around her waist and closed his eyes. His grandfather was god of the sea, of horses, and earth shaker. New York was about to experience the latter. Luke just hoped the debris didn't crush him or Bryn…

"Luke, what are you doing?" Bryn inquired cautiously, glancing up at the ceiling where cracks were forming. He didn't answer her because part of the ceiling came crashing down in front of them with water gushing down. Luke created a water shield around the two of them as he practically carried Bryn up the pile of debris and into the filthy water of the Hudson River. It was times like these when Luke really appreciated his ability to stay dry in water because who knows what toxic stuff was in the Hudson. He'd probably grow a third eye or a leg. Bryn might end up actually being able to turn into an eagle after this…

It seemed like an eternity before the two actually breached the surface. Even though Luke had created an air bubble so they could breathe, they still gasped for air. Bryn clung desperately to Luke, making sure she didn't separate from him.

"You okay?" He questioned.

"Yeah… yeah."

"Let's get out of here." He swept the two of them to the bank of the Hudson where they crawled onto the ground and collapsed.

Bryn, still dazed, sat up. "Well that was an experience."

"Now I owe you one." Luke said, standing up.

"Are you two okay?" Derek shouted as he and Nicole came running up to them.

Bryn nodded. "Yeah, we're fine."

"Isn't this the second bridge you destroyed?" Nicole asked.

"Yes," Luke confirmed.

"You really need to find a different method of destroying monsters without taking down famous New York landmarks in the process."

"Life or landmarks, I'm going with life," Bryn said. She jogged off back to where the fight originated. The others had no other choice but to follow. When they arrived to the rest of the demigods, not many monsters were left. And while the ones that _were_ still there were putting up a fight, they were destroyed pretty quickly. The demigods crowded around Luke, Derek, and Bryn.

"What next?" a girl piped up.

"I doubt any of those monsters were aquatic so I think we're safe to leave this area and split up among the other battlefields. There's three more Greek ones so five Hunters per tunnel and bridge. I'll let the Hunters decide which ones to take. The Dionysus kids will need to pair up with twelve Ares kids. And Nicole, I'll leave it up to you to decide where everyone should go. The three of us are going to head over to other places and see all where we can help out. If you need anything, let us know," Luke said.

Ace, Roulette, and King flew down to their riders.

_You enjoyed holding her didn't you?_

"Excuse me?" Luke said aloud, glancing at Derek.

"What?" The son of Hades replied. "I didn't say anything."

_Me you idiot. Your head is full of kelp._

"King?"

"Wait, my Pegasus is talking to you? What's he saying?"

"I am not repeating it."

_Do it. I dare you._

"I'm not going to do it because you dare me to."

_Kill joy. Fine. I won't tell me what she's told me about you._

"I'm sure I can think of many things, none that are flattering."

"What is he telling you?" Bryn asked.

"Nothing. Just trying to dare me to do stupid stuff. Your Pegasus has attitude."

_And you have no clue._

"Yes I do!" Luke protested.

"Luke, stop arguing with King. We have more pressing issues here," Bryn said.

"Then tell him to shut up since he only listens to you."

"King, I know you're probably insulting him but can you keep your thoughts to yourself until the battle is over? I need Luke focused."

_He can't focus with you around._

"He said yes," Luke told her.

"Thanks buddy. You get extra sugar cubes for that after tonight." King leapt off into the sky. Derek and Luke quickly followed. For the next five hours, the three demigods flew from one place to another to aid their comrades. Considering that each tunnel and bridge had a parent couple (i.e. the Jacksons, the Graces, etc.) wreaking havoc on the monsters, there wasn't much to do help wise. It was only when Jason got knocked out by a brick that Luke, Bryn, and Derek took the Grace's place while Piper took her husband away from the battlefield.

"We've got this completely under control!" Antony shouted at the three Greeks.

"Is that why everything's on fire?" Bryn asked.

Before Antony could reply, screams filled the air. Demigods scrambled out of the way of two golden blurs.

Derek swore in Greek. "Colchis Bulls. I thought those two were done for good."

"Move!" Bryn shoved the boys out of the way. Luke yanked her with him to make sure she was out of the way of the stampeding bulls as well.

"We need to get those away from the campers," Luke said.

"Antony, we'll distract them. Bryn, help him. Luke and I got this," Derek ordered.

"These are Colchis bulls. They breathe fire! You don't want to be in front of them! And their skin is boiling hot. You touch it, you burn. Be careful!"

"We're always careful," Luke remarked.

"Yes, and I'm immortal," she replied sarcastically. "Just don't get yourself killed."

With that, she went off with Antony to help get the troops back in their ranks.

* * *

**Bryn**

Bryn hadn't been fighting long when Luke bolted past her with the Colchis Bull charging behind him.

"I'm okay!" He shouted, running at a break-neck speed with the bull thundering behind him.

"You are not okay you idiot!" she yelled back, chasing after him and the bull. "Antony, hold them off. I have to go help Sharkboy!"

"Who's Sharkboy?!" Antony hollered back. She ignored him. Bryn's focus was on trying to get the bull away from Luke. That was hard considering both were outdistancing her. She whistled for King. The Pegasus landed next to her practically immediately.

"Get me in front of Luke," she said. The Pegasus shot into the air and flew as fast as he could to the grandson of Poseidon. Bryn nocked an explosive arrow and fired it to where it landed right in front of the bull. It blew the bronze contraption onto its back, and it blew Luke off his feet. She hopped off of King and helped Luke up. King flew up to the rooftops.

"You okay? Sorry I didn't give you any warning," Bryn apologized.

"You apologizing? That's something new… and I'm fine, just- LOOK OUT!" Luke ran into her, pushing her out of the way as the Colchis bull charged past them. The Jackson boy rolled away as Bryn got on one knee and nocked another explosive arrow, the last one she had. She aimed it at the bull who was now turning around for a second charge. When it bellowed in anger, Bryn fired the arrow into the mouth of the bull. The explosion inside the bronze monster caused its inner workings to explode as well. The bull collapsed into a heap of nothingness. She let out a sigh of relief and asked, "You okay Luke?"

When he didn't answer, she turned around. Luke was still lying on the ground, unmoving.

"Luke?" Bryn said, crawling towards him. "Luke! Answer me!"

His eyes were closed even when she pulled him up by his armor into sitting position. It was then that she saw the small pool of blood on the pavement. Bryn felt the blood drain out of her face, she felt her stomach drop. Gently placing him on his stomach, she assessed the damage to his back. The Colchis Bull had gotten him with its horn. A jagged rip went across the entirety of Luke's back armor and across his back. The armor prevented more damage from being done but if Bryn didn't do something soon to help him, he was as good as gone. With shaking hands, she removed his armor and placed her hands over the wound. She didn't have much energy now that the adrenaline from the fighting was wearing off, but she had to do this. She had to save him. Bryn closed her eyes and began chanting a healing spell. Light emanated from her hands as the spell worked its magic. Upon opening her eyes again, she saw that the spell hadn't don't much damage repair. Bryn repeated the spell again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

Bryn repeated the spell ten times total. By the time she finished the tenth time, Bryn herself could barely keep her eyes open. Mustering up what little strength she had left, Bryn gingerly dragged Luke over to a building where she sat against a building with Luke propped up in sitting position against her chest and made her bow _Aspergós _form. As she strung an arrow so she could shoot at any enemy that might come their way, she whistled for King. When he came, she said, "Go get Percy. Bring him to his son."

The Pegasus dashed off towards wherever the son of Poseidon was. To pass time, and to make sure she stayed awake, Bryn began humming a lullaby, one her mother had sung to her when she was little. It was a sad song about a soldier who'd seen and been through too much. She found it fitting for the situation they were in.

Bryn was unsure how much time passed before she heard the first sound of movement. Instantly she had her bow up, arrow pointed at the direction of the sound. However, it just turned out to be King with Percy, Annabeth, Silena, and Brady.

"Oh my gods! Luke!" Annabeth exclaimed, running over to her son. Silena, Brady, and Percy were right behind her. "What happened to him?!"

"Colchis bull. He tried to get us both out of the way but the bull's horn must've hit his back. I tried healing him as much as I could Mrs. Jackson. I- I didn't have the strength to get him back to the Empire State Building…" Bryn explained, keeping her head down so the Jacksons wouldn't recognize her. Unfortunately, Percy did.

"Bryn? Is that you?" he queried. All she could do was nod. She briefly glanced up at Mrs. Jackson but quickly looked away when she saw the anger rising up in the stormy gray eyes.

"He needs more medical attention. I can explain everything after," Bryn said quietly.

"We will most definitely be having a talk," Mrs. Jackson said furiously. She and Percy lifted Luke onto Blackjack with Mr. Jackson. Silena and Brady knelt next to Bryn.

"Are you okay? Because you look terrible," Brady said.

"Thank you for summing that up," she replied sarcastically, pushing herself up into standing position. She tried to take a step forward but her legs had no strength. Had Silena and Brady not caught her, she would've fallen to the ground.

"I need to get the troops rounded up," Bryn said breathlessly.

"Let me do that. Silena, could you help my sister get back to base?" Brady inquired.

"Yeah, no problem. If you see Derek, tell him what happened." The son of Zeus nodded and got onto his Pegasus. Silena helped Bryn onto King before getting on her Pegasus, Roulette. The two horses took off and within minutes were at the Empire State Building. Silena and Bryn took off their armor before heading up to where Luke was being taken care of. As the two girls reached the doorway, Bryn stopped.

"What is it?" Silena questioned.

"I'll… I'll wait out here," Bryn replied, starting to feel nauseous. She wrapped her arms around her stomach. She'd tried to break the habit so people wouldn't know when she was nervous but that hadn't worked.

"Why are going to wait out here?"

"I don't think your mom wants me around right now. I'll wait out here and wait for you to tell me how he is. Besides, if he's awake, I don't think he wants me around him either."

"Bryn, despite my brother's actions, he does love you. He was a total jerk to you, to put it mildly, but if you want to make amends with him, you need to stop putting up all these walls. I know those walls have kept you from getting hurt by people close to you in the past but sometimes you need to let people in."

"I'm trying Silena. I am. It's habit. One I'm trying to break. I'm sure my words don't mean much right now after what I did but I'm trying, I am."

"That's all I can ask for. I'll let you know how he's doing." Silena entered the room. Bryn stared at the door, debating whether she'd made the right choice. She was the last person Luke wanted in his room right now, not to mention his mother my kill her. Instead, Bryn paced up and down the hallway to keep her awake. For about an hour it worked, but exhaustion was quickly consuming her. Giving in, Bryn sat next to the door to Luke's room, using the wall to lean against. She tried to think of battle plans, of what all that needed to be done before the next fight, but her brain wouldn't think clearly. Bryn's eyes fluttered shut. A few moments later she woke back up, chastising herself for falling asleep. However, it happened again. It happened multiple times, but no matter how much she tried to force herself to stay awake, Bryn kept falling asleep.

"What are you doing on the floor?" A woman asked. Bryn jerked her head up, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. She looked up at the person in a daze although quickly regaining her wits when she saw the stormy gray eyes staring down at her. Bryn scrambled up and backed away from Mrs. Jackson who simply asked again, "What were you doing on the floor?"

"I-uh- was waiting… for Silena. She was going to tell me how Luke was doing ma'am…" Bryn couldn't make eye contact with Mrs. Jackson. It took a lot to scare her, but somehow Silena and Luke's mother managed to be one of those few things that did.

"Why didn't you just come in?" Annabeth queried.

Bryn shuffled on her feet. "I'm not Luke's favorite person right now. I didn't think he'd want me in there. I didn't think you'd want me in there."

Annabeth sighed. "I want to be mad at you Bryn after seeing what your 'death' did to my kids and Derek… but you also just saved my son's life. That doesn't excuse you for leaving like you did, because you are giving me and Percy an explanation about why you left the way you did, but I'm not going to kill you like you think I am."

"Mrs. Jackson, I can't… I can't go through explaining what I did. I've explained it four times: once to Hallie, once to my brothers, once to Silena, and once to Derek. With the last one, I could barely get through it because I couldn't bear to see the look on his face. If you want to know, I'll get Silena to tell you but please Mrs. Jackson, I know I don't deserve to ask you of this, but please don't make me do the explaining. I-I can't do it again…"

Annabeth stared at the daughter of Zeus inquisitively and was about to say something when Silena and Percy came out. Percy wrapped his arm around his wife's waist and asked, "Is everything okay here?"

"Silena? Tell them. Tell them what I did, what I've done. Please. After telling Derek, I can't do it again…" Bryn pleaded.

Silena nodded. "Mom? Dad? Why don't we go somewhere private?"

Percy and Annabeth nodded but before they left, the latter said, "Someone needs to watch over for Luke until we get back. Bryn, watch him while we're gone."

The Jacksons left before Bryn could protest. Her hand hovered over the doorknob as she thought how horrible this idea was. If Luke woke up with Bryn in his room, he'd want her out. He told her he didn't want her near him until she told him the truth about what was going on, and she had no plans of telling him anytime soon. In fact she wanted him to find out after the war, because knowing too much of your future was usually never a good thing. The only reason it'd been good for Bryn was because it gave her time to prepare for everything.

Taking a deep breath, she entered the room. Luke was passed out on his bed. He was laying on stomach which made sense considering his injury was on his back. His back had white gauze taped to it. Bryn wanted to see how his wound was doing but knew she risked waking him up if she removed the gauze. Instead, she sat on the couch next to the side of the bed he wasn't facing and settled in.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! Oh and I edited the Great Prophecy from 'seven must they defeat' to 'four'. I'd been thinking about the big seven and overlooked that when I was editing. Okay, review :)**


	24. We Have Something in Common

**So I'm assuming y'all liked the last chapter so have another one!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**The loneliest moment in someone's life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly."  
****~F. Scott Fitzgerald, **_**The Great Gatsby**_

* * *

Chapter 24: We Have Something in Common

**Luke**

Someone was singing, but Luke couldn't tell if it was in his dreams or not. Part of it was in another language. But it was soothing nonetheless. They kept repeating the song too, so Luke soon learned the words:

_Close your eyes; I know what you see  
The darkness is high, and you're in ten feet deep  
But we've survived more terrible monsters than sleep  
And you know I will be here to tell you to breathe  
_  
_Tu sei il mio soldatino  
La ragione per cui vivo  
Non ti scordar di me  
Io veglierò su di te_

Stumbling lost; the last choice of all that you meet  
It's the cost of ruling those 'neath your feet  
Paths you've crossed, and trust you're trying to keep  
You're exhausted, listening for a voice that can't speak

Ma nico, mio caro

Tu sei il mio soldatino  
La ragione ho vissuto  
Non ti scordar di me  
Io veglierò su di te

So you run; through shadows you roam  
Seams undone by the love you thought you could own  
But he's just one of many that you might call home  
And maybe someday, the bitter will fade from your bones;

_Fade from your bones, oh_

Eri il mio soldatino  
Ora un principe oscuro  
Ma anche per te, c'è una luce  
Che ad un'altra vita ti conduce

He shifted in his sleep, and the singing ceased immediately. Luke opened his eyes a sliver but everything was blurry. He tried to say 'hello' but it came out as more of a grunt. Shuffling on the other side of him caught his attention. Whoever it was opened the door and disappeared. A few seconds later he heard his dad say, "Luke? Are you awake?"

"Dad?" Luke murmured.

"Hey bud, how are you feeling?"

"Exhausted. What happened?"

"You saved Bryn's life but got your back ripped to shreds in the process. Lost a lot of blood too. If it weren't for Bryn, you would've bled out. Your back is pretty much completely healed now. We gave you some ambrosia and nectar when you woke briefly but you probably don't remember that."

"I don't. Which one of you was singing?" Luke inquired, rolling slowly over onto his back.

"You know I'm completely tone-deaf so it wasn't me," Mr. Jackson joked.

"Maybe you were dreaming it," Silena suggested.

"No, I don't think I was. Where's mom? And Bryn?"

"I'm here, sweetie," Annabeth said. Her voice seemed strange, as if she had been crying or was about to. "Bryn is sleeping. She kept watch over you for a little bit while Silena, your dad, and I talked."

"I-I need to thank her. I need… I need to talk to her," Luke groaned, slowly sitting up.

Silena placed a hand on his shoulder. "You can tell her after she gets some rest. We're fighting again in about five hours. Bryn was watching you for the past three hours and stayed awake for the other two to make sure you were okay. She needs her rest."

"Have any of you gotten some sleep?" Luke queried.

"No, not yet."

"Go get some sleep. I'm not going anywhere."

"Are you sure?" Annabeth asked.

"I'm fine, really. Go get some sleep."

"There's nothing you want to tell us?" His mother prodded.

"Um, no?" Luke scrunched his eyebrows, trying to figure out where his mother was going with this.

"All right, then. We'll see you later." Luke's family left the room. He fell back against the pillows as he racked his brain to try and figure out why, if Bryn had been watching him, why she sang to him. Most people didn't sing a lullaby to someone they hated. Bryn wasn't like most people but still. And where had she learned it? Surely she didn't hear it from her mother, or if she had, how could she remember it that well? She had to have heard it from somewhere else. But where?

Someone knocked on his door. Luke slowly got up and answered it. Mrs. Winchester and Mr. Drew stood there sleepily. The former gave him a smile and said, "We heard you were up and talking. I just wanted to see how you were feeling for myself."

"Oh. I'm fine. Just a little sore is all. How are you two? Were you injured any?"

"Not much. A cut or two but nothing that can prevent us from fighting some more."

"There's more to why you're here than just wanting to know if I'm all right isn't there?"

Mrs. Winchester bit her lip, reminding him so much of her daughter in that moment. "There's been… rumors that a certain daughter of Zeus is alive. I thought that if anyone would know about it, considering your history with my daughter, it would be you."

"Mrs. Winchester… don't take this the wrong way when I say the rumors are true, about Bryn being alive. She knows you're alive so if she hasn't come to you yet, there must be a reason."

"Do you know that reason?"

"No. You're not the only one she's been keeping secrets from," Luke said sadly. "I'll have Derek or Silena ask her. They're on better terms with her at the moment…"

"You two having a fight?" Mr. Drew inquired.

"I honestly have no idea what's going on between the two of us. We're barely speaking to each other, and most of that is my fault. When we do talk, it gets pretty hostile pretty fast."

"She's putting walls around herself, isn't she?"

"Yes, sir."

"She definitely takes on after her mother then." Mrs. Winchester glared in annoyance at him. He winked at but continued. "Bryn will break it to you at some point, you just need to see the signs to know when she's ready. Penn, we should go. Luke needs some more rest."

As the two of them were leaving, Penn turned around and said, "Luke? If you see her, tell her we love her and that no matter what's happened or what she's done, we will always love her."

"I will." With that, the couple left.

Four hours later, Luke dressed for battle. He was still sore but once the adrenaline got pumping in his veins, he'd be fine. Silena, Derek, Hallie, Bradley, and Brady were already down in the briefing room, going over where everyone was stationed.

Hallie was the first to see him come in. She gave him a smile. "Luke! Glad to see you up and about! How are you feeling?"

"Sore but I'm alive. Where's Bryn?"

"We're trying to let her get as much sleep as possible. She didn't get much last night," Silena informed. "She's fine though. She'll be here soon. Knowing her, she's probably already up and getting ready."

"You'd be correct," Bryn said. Luke jumped. Apparently she hadn't lost her silent walking ability. As she was about to say something else, a phone rang. Bryn picked it up. "Hello… are you okay… what about Reyna and Hylla… and they're okay as well… they're definitely okay if they're screeching like that… where are you… do you need me to send help… I know but I can spare it… the Romans showed up, we destroyed two tunnels and a bridge so there's more demigods per stronghold now so we have better chances… yes I know you're strong but you're transporting… I'm sending someone to help whether you like it or not… you're not dying on my watch. I have enough people potentially dying for me as it is. I'm not going to let you be included in that. Hang tight, I'll have someone there soon."

"Everything okay?" Bradley asked.

"Sort of. Two of the three parts needed for Plan Phoenix are here. The third one is still back in the Azores. Reyna and Hylla both don't have much strength left and we need all three here. We need to send one of the Bellona kids with Hallie and get them all here. Hallie, are you up for it?"

The daughter of Hades nodded. "We've been practicing just in case this happened. I'm ready. I'll take Caitlyn."

"When you get here, contact Derek. Since you two are related, you should be able to contact him via minds. I'll fight with Derek so I'll know immediately. But that means one of my brothers will have to fight with Luke. Which one of you is least likely to kill him?"

"I'll fight with him," Bradley offered.

"Promise you won't kill him?"

"Promise. We need him."

"But once you stop needing me, you'll kill me," Luke remarked.

"Maybe. We'll take the Williamsburg Bridge."

"I know we've been destroying a lot of land marks but we need to cut off as many places of access to Manhattan as possible. The satyrs and nymphs and automatons, according to Grover, are keeping enemy forces at bay over there so we're fine right now."

"What if we take out a bridge?" Brady suggested.

"We'd need to get explosives or something flammable rigged up to the bridge- we have thirty minutes before the battle starts. How are we going to do that in time?" Bryn pointed out.

"I can bring it down," Derek declared, arms crossed confidently.

"Uh, how?" Silena queried.

"I control hellfire, right? I talked to Chiron about it and he said it's similar to Greek fire. If that's the case, I just throw it at the support system of the bridge and it goes down. I could get some explosives from the Hephaestus cabin to help in the destruction of it but I need to be on the bridge myself. If the monsters see me flying around on a Pegasus, they'll know something's up. But if we're going to do it, we need to do it now."

Bryn hesitated. "Do what you need to. Just don't get killed."

"Let's get going partner. We don't have much time," he said with a grin. "I'm strangely feeling like a mixture between Seamus Finnigan and Neville Longbottom right now."

For the first time since she'd been there, Bryn gave a genuine smile. The two started joking back and forth with a lot of Harry Potter puns.

"All right, I'm going to go get Caitlyn. I'll see y'all probably about mid-battle," Hallie said.

"Be careful," Bradley told her, pulling her into a hug. Then in a barely audible whisper, he added, "Don't make me lose you too."

"It'll take a lot more than some shadow-travelling to kill me. I'll be back." Hallie left the room.

"Come on, Silena, you lead the way this time," Brady insisted, motioning for her to get in front of him.

"Oh it's my turn to lead? Why the sudden change in heart?" she laughed.

"Granddaughter of Athena seems to be the man with a plan… or a woman with a plan… you know what, let's just say you know what you're doing better than I do so you lead."

Silena snorted as she headed out with Brady. Luke and Bradley were the only ones remaining in the room. The former decided to break that. "So why aren't you going to kill me? Why didn't you let your brother be my partner?"

"Because I don't entirely hate you. I'm not blind. I see the way you look at my sister. Brady is too headstrong to see that though. He takes on way too much after our dad. I take on after our mom. Bryn is in-between. Plus, we both have something in common."

"What's that?"

"We're both in love with girls who keep putting themselves in situations that could get themselves killed."

At that, Luke smiled. "And they somehow keep avoiding death."

"One day, for one of them, their luck will run out, and there won't be anything we can do about it."

At that, the Jackson boy's face fell. "Or ours."

"Yours won't run out for a while Luke, not if my sister can help it."

"I still need to thank her. For saving my life…"

"You'll get your chance. Come on, we need to get ready for battle."

* * *

**Derek**

Derek stood at the entrance to the bridge on the enemy side, facing the direction Hannah's army was coming from. The sun had set about an hour ago. As he waited for the monsters to appear, he went over his plan. Taunt the monsters, get them on the bridge, set fire to the explosives, and then run like Tartarus was trying to suck him into the Underworld.

The war horns brought him out of his thoughts. The thunderous, simultaneous stomping of Hannah's army was heard before they were actually seen. But they arrived quickly enough.

"Hey boneheads!" Derek shouted.

"We're going to kill you!" one monster replied.

"Oh yeah? You and whose army?!" he taunted. When the monsters started charging at him, Derek broke out into a run. He shot out his hands to either side, sending fire balls at the explosive charges on the railings of the bridge. One by one, he heard each explosion go off. Suddenly he heard the cracking of metal and concrete before the beginning of massive splashes in the river below. Cries of monsters were soon to be followed.

"DEREK RUN!" Bryn screamed. He put on a burst of speed as he turned around. Derek had seriously underestimated how fast the bridge would go down. If he shadow-travelled right now, he had no idea where he'd end up. The adrenaline he was feeling right now could mess up where he wanted to go. So he tried something new. Thrusting his hands to the ground, Derek yelled "Flame on!"

Fire shot out from his hands with so much force it pushed him off the ground, higher and higher. He focused on keeping himself in the air until he was above his fellow demigods. Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground as he watched the destruction of the Manhattan Bridge. Derek turned to face Bryn with a triumphant grin on his face. She stared at him with a shocked expression.

"What?" Derek asked.

"You just flew with fire," she said.

"Yes. I know."

"Can I call you Firestorm? Like from the show _The Flash_?"

"When did you have time to watch _The Flash_?" Derek queried in confusion.

"It wasn't all work while I was away. Come on, we should get the troops somewhere else. You and I will stay here with my troops to take care of any straggling monsters." Bryn barked the orders to the other demigods. Cora split up her troops so that they would also be fighting with the Greeks. Derek, Bryn, and sixteen of Bryn's troops got on the Pegasi. They flew around with bows and arrows, shooting any monsters they could see. It took about thirty minutes for that to happen and another fifteen to make sure they hadn't missed any.

When they landed, Scott asked, "Where to now?"

"There's sixteen of you and four places left to split up at. Separate accordingly. Derek and I are going to go do a routine check on other places we've destroyed just to make sure no monsters have slipped through those areas. Then he and I will fly around fighting wherever we're needed most," Bryn explained. Scott nodded before getting people into groups. Bryn and Derek hopped onto King and Bingo and flew into the sky. They checked the Queens-Midtown Tunnel first, then the Queensboro Bridge, and lastly the Lincoln Tunnel. All were secure.

"Where to-" Derek cutoff mid-sentence as Hallie invaded his thoughts: _Tell Bryn we're here. We're all at Hunters Point South Park._

"What is it?" Bryn inquired. Derek relayed the message to her. A mischievous smirk spread across Bryn's face. "Go help out the troops. Bradley, Brady, and I have something we need to do."

* * *

**What do you think Bryn has up her sleeve? And the song in this chapter is called "Soldatino" by Paola Bennet. It's such a wonderful lullaby so check it out on YouTube! Let me know what you think in a review :)**


	25. Mother of Dragons

**You get to see what trick Bryn has up her sleeve this time! Have fun y'all! :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Losing him was like hearing every goodbye ever said to me all at once."  
****~Unknown  
**

* * *

Chapter 25: Mother of Dragons

**Luke**

Bradley made a surprisingly good fighting partner. Luke knew the son of Zeus was a good soldier, he had no doubt of that, but he hadn't expected to make a good team with him. The two of them complimented each other's fighting style, but Luke realized that was because Bradley fought exactly like his sister.

Bradley sent a massive lightning bolt through the monsters' ranks. Luke created two water fists, grabbed a handful of monsters, and tossed them into the river. The two boys cut through the ranks with their fellow soldiers behind them. Luke saw one of his own take a spear to the heart. Anger exploded through him. He charged at the monster but it was blown away before he even reached it.

Bradley whistled. "Damn Jackson. How are you doing that?"

Luke looked down to see what he meant. Clouds swirled around him like a hurricane. It _was_ a hurricane, he realized, albeit a miniature one. Luke grinned and said, "I have no idea how I'm doing this."

"Keep doing it! Let's keep-" Bradley halted in his speech. He'd been smiling before but now he was beaming. "Looks like Plan Phoenix is in the works. Hold them here for a while. I and my siblings will be back ASAP! Daenerys is calling."

Bradley hopped onto his Pegasus and flew off. Luke grumbled something about the Winchesters being way too cryptic for their own good and wondering who the hell Daenerys was. He went back to fighting against the enemy. Every time Luke killed one monster, two seemed to take its place. He felt him and his army slowly being pushed back across the bridge, slowly losing any progress they had made previously.

That changed however when a deafening screech filled the air. Everyone covered their ears in an attempt to block their ear drums from bursting, but the screech permeated through that effort. Luke looked up to see what was causing the horrendous noise when he saw flames erupting on the other side of the bridge. Screams erupted from the enemies as this jet of fire flew above them. The fire stopped a few feet away from Luke and he had to blink a few times to make sure he was seeing things correctly. Once it registered in Luke's brain what it actually was that he was staring at, he understood Bradley's Daenerys comment. A massive black dragon, with hints of red in its coloring, flew above the battle. Its rider was a familiar daughter of Zeus.

Luke laughed at little as he saw the monsters screaming in terror at the winged shadow above them. Bryn was turning the dragon around so she could send another wave of fire. The monsters that had missed the first wave were stringing their bows with arrows. Luke wasn't going to let them hurt Bryn or the dragon.

Luke raised his sword above his head and shouted, "Romans, charge!"

* * *

**Bryn**

The world below her was chaos. Monsters were panicking because they were either getting killed by fire or getting slaughtered by the Roman legion and Luke. The latter was a blur. He was moving so fast she could barely keep an eye on him, a serious problem when she was trying to make sure he didn't get himself killed.

Hannah's army, while a good ten times larger than the demigod one, could not hold against the might of three dragons and the wrath of the demigods. But Bryn knew Hannah had tricks up her sleeves, deadly tricks. Tricks that could easily kill thirty demigods in one go. That trick came about three hours into battle when Bryn saw Luke hop onto Ace and fly over the Hudson River. Curious to know what he was up to, she followed him. He kept his eyes trained on the water, searching for something. But this was the Hudson, nothing was visible. That is until a drakon flung itself upward at Luke and Ace, trying to clamp its jaws shut around them. The two barely managed to swerve out of the way.

"Come on pea brain! Is that the best you can do?!" Luke shouted. He jumped onto the ground. Ace flew up to a rooftop, narrowly avoiding being eaten by the drakon which had emerged from the waters, stomping onto the ground. Naturally, Luke ran away from it. Whatever he was doing, it wasn't going to work for long. The drakon's weight might be slowing it down but Bryn knew how fast those things could move when they wanted to. She urged her dragon to move as fast as possible before flying over Luke. Bryn proceeded to have her dragon pick Luke up, toss him in the air, and catch him on the saddle. He wildly grabbed onto Bryn.

"What was that?!" He demanded.

"You were going to get yourself killed with what you were doing," she snapped. "Drogon. _ Dracarys_!"

Fire shot out of the dragon's mouth onto the drakon. The latter screamed but when Drogon stopped, the monster was still there, angrier than ever.

"Drogon, really?" Luke mused, sounding slightly amused. "Please tell me the twins' dragons are named Viserion and Rhaegal."

"I had to do something when I couldn't sleep and Game of Thrones seemed the way to go and yes, that's their names. Now shut up and let me focus." Bryn ordered Drogon to fire again and again until the dragon could barely do it anymore. She swore under her breath. "Drogon, call for your brothers. Fly high. And Luke, stay. Put. Here. You know what I mean."

"What are you going to do?" He asked her.

She stood up and faced him. "That drakon is immune to fire, but it's not immune to electricity."

With that, Bryn jumped off her dragon, sword in hand. When she landed on the dragon, she drove her sword deep into its neck so she wouldn't fall off. If she did fall, it was because she couldn't hold on. The drakon thrashed around, trying to get her off, but Bryn had landed strategically so that the monster wouldn't be able to get her.

Power. She needed lots of power. To get that, she needed a lot of emotion. Typically fear and anger fed power, but for Bryn, it was different. Her strength came from protecting the ones she loved. Luke, Silena, Derek, Bradley, Brady, Hallie… Bryn thought of all of them. She thought of when she first met Luke, Silena, and Derek; when she first met her brothers; when she had her first deep conversation with Hallie that made Bryn realize she'd found another lifelong friend; when she found Luke, beaten and bloody, but alive, and how that's all she cared about; when Luke had saved her life from the Colchis Bull; when she nearly lost Luke to the Colchis Bull; when she found out her mother and Michael were alive. All those instances fueled her power and within seconds, she felt the first lightning bolt strike her sword. More and more followed until she had to close her eyes to prevent herself from being blinded.

The drakon was thrashing about, wailing from the pain resulting from the lightning bolts. Bryn held on somehow but she felt her energy draining fast. If she didn't destroy this drakon soon, it would destroy her.

* * *

**Bradley**

When Bradley heard Drogon roar, dread filled his bones. Something was wrong. Then he saw the lightning bolts, at least forty, all striking one thing. Brady saw it too. The twins jerked Viserion and Rhaegal in the direction. The boys had to shield their eyes from the brightness but once they got to the scene, the lightning stopped. All they saw was their sister helplessly sprawled out on the ground with Ryan London standing above her, spear in hand. Bradley heard himself and Brady shout their sister's name in outright panic. Viserion and Rhaegal dove towards the ground. The twins jumped off their dragons and ran towards their sister.

Ryan was saying something to Bryn. Whatever it was, Bradley didn't care. He'd been wanting to kill the guy ever since he met him. The things he'd said and done to Bryn made Bradley's blood boil with rage.

Just as he and Brady reached Bryn, and just as Ryan was about to impale their sister with his spear, a sword sprouted from Ryan's chest. His spear clattered to the ground as he looked down at the blood-stained sword running through him. The sword was yanked from his body and Ryan collapsed to the ground. In his place stood a wide-eyed Luke.

"Jackson? You okay?" Brady asked quietly as Bradley knelt down next to Bryn. He placed two fingers on the pulse point on her neck. Although her pulse was faint, it was there, meaning she was alive.

Luke blinked, obviously in shock at what he'd just done. "He was going to kill her. I-I couldn't… I couldn't let him do that."

"Thank you for saving our sister's life. We need to get her back to the Empire State Building. Luke, take Viserion and Rhaegal back to battle. Have Hallie and Derek ride them. I'd say let Silena ride one but she rode Rhaegal and got a little wigged out."

"What? No! I'm going with you!" Luke argued.

"She's going to be fine. All she did was knock herself out with how much energy she used doing that bloody lightning trick. Besides, she'd want you to keep fighting. You _need_ to keep fighting."

Luke sighed. "I know she would… tell me if anything, I mean _anything_, goes wrong and you need my help. I'll be there in a heartbeat."

The twins nodded. Luke carefully lifted Bryn into his arms. Bradley whistled for his and his brother's Pegasus' to fly down. They were freaked out by the dragons but allowed for their riders to get on. Luke passed Bryn to Bradley once Bradley was settled on his ride. The Jackson boy watched as the Winchesters took off. Bradley turned around briefly to make sure Luke wasn't following them. He wasn't. He was just standing there. Drogon came up behind him and rested his head on top of Luke's. It was almost as if the dragon could sense his new rider's distress. Bradley wondered if they'd made the right choice making the Jackson boy stay behind. Luke wouldn't be able to focus much on the battle because his thoughts would be with Bryn, and if he wasn't focused on the battle, it could get him killed.

"He'll be okay. If anything, her getting hurt will only fuel him to kick the monster's butts so he can get to her quicker," Brady remarked.

At times, Bradley forgot his twin could read him like a book. This was one of those times. "I know. But I still worry. After all she's done to make sure he stays alive…"

"We have to trust him."

"That's the problem. I don't trust people easily."

Brady harrumphed. "Runs in the family. Come on, we need to get her back to headquarters immediately."

* * *

**Is Bryn going to be okay? Only time will tell. Reviews would be absolutely wonderful :)**


	26. We Had A Deal

**Game of Thrones is seriously screwing me up. I'm waiting so impatiently for the next two episodes… okay, enjoy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**The thing about love is that you never truly know the person that you're with until you see them wrestle their demons in broad daylight."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 26: We Had a Deal

**Luke**

For the next seven hours, sleep wouldn't come easily. If he tried, all Luke saw was Ryan's dead body and all he heard was the sound of his sword running through the guy. If he had to go back in time to that moment, he wouldn't change the outcome. Bryn's life came first over everything. Luke couldn't lose her again. The first time it happened, there was motivation to keep him distracted. But if he lost her a second time, Luke feared for his sanity.

So, instead of sleeping, Luke sat outside Bryn's room, waiting to hear how she was.

"Luke? May I speak to you?" Hallie asked softly. He looked up at her. She was standing in the doorway of Bryn's room.

"How is she doing?" He replied, standing up.

"Still asleep, but she woke up briefly. Checked to make sure you and her brothers were safe then crashed again. Ryan must've hurt her before you or the twins saw her. She got stabbed in the leg."

"What?! She'll live though right?"

"Definitely. This isn't the worst she's faced, and by far not the worst she's going to face. Bryn knows that too."

"What is it she's going to face? You act as if you know what it is. Everyone here seems to know something I don't. What is it?" Luke demanded exhaustedly.

"I'm not at liberty to say. If you want to find out, you have to ask her. She'll tell you. Not willingly, but she will. You're her… you're her kryptonite."

"I don't want to be her kryptonite! I don't want to be the reason she gets herself killed!" he hissed.

"Luke, I didn't come out here to make you more upset than you already are. I came to see how you were doing. Bradley told me what you did to Ryan," Hallie said. At the mention of the guy, Luke shut down. She picked up on it instantly. "I've never killed someone so I have no idea how you're feeling but what you did, you destroyed Hannah's top general. You destroyed one of her strongest military leaders. You killed the guy that has tormented Bryn for the past year. You killed the guy that was about to kill the girl you love. Ryan was not a good person, and even if he survived the war, he would continue killing demigods that supported the gods. Do not let the darkness of this eat at you. I don't know you well Luke, but I know you have this light in you and with all this darkness going on around you what with the end of the world and the curse and now you killing Ryan, I can tell you're letting the darkness consume you, you're letting it eat the light in you away. You have made it this far with what's been thrown at you so fight back Luke. _Fight back_."

"I'm trying Hallie. I'm not doing a good job of it though," Luke confessed.

She gave him a sympathetic smile. "I know you are. That's who you are. But you need someone who wants to save that light in you. I think you know who I'm talking about. I'll see you later. Go in and see her." Hallie patted him on the shoulder and disappeared down the hallway. Luke stood in his spot for a good minute, letting her words sink in.

Taking a deep breath, Luke poked his head into Bryn's room. Prerana, Ana, and Vanessa were sitting around her bed. When they heard him come in, they all stood up.

"You don't need to get up on my account. I just wanted to see her," he said softly.

"We'll leave you two alone," Ana replied. She and the other two girls hurriedly left the room before he could protest. Luke padded softly to Bryn's bed. She was sprawled out on her stomach underneath the covers.

"Bryn?" he whispered, sitting next to her on the bed. She remained still. "Bryn, if you can hear me, know that when you wake up, I want to talk to you. I've messed up a lot of things recently, but nothing on that list stands out more or compares to how I treated you when you came back. I'm not leaving this world without telling you what you need to know. I'm not leaving this world without telling you what I should've told you years ago."

Bryn still didn't stir. Luke sighed, placing his hand over hers. Just as he did that, Brady opened the door. "Hey Jackson, we need you. It's urgent."

Brady left when Luke nodded. He kissed Bryn on her head before going to the meeting room. When he got there, Silena, Derek, Hallie, Brady, and Bradley were arguing.

"What is going on?" Luke inquired, stepping cautiously into the room.

"Here, read it," Bradley ordered, handing the Jackson boy a piece of paper. Luke opened it up and read it. At the end of the note, he was unsure of what to believe. Hannah was requesting a meeting under a white flag. Luke highly doubted she was surrendering, but if she wasn't doing that, then what _was_ she doing? Did she want to negotiate something?

"You're arguing about whether or not we should go meet her," Luke stated.

"Derek, Brady, and I are against it. Silena and Hallie are for it," Bradley explained. "What do you think?"

"It's Hannah. Usually when people call for a white flag meeting, they just want to speak. But with it being her, with all she's done, I don't trust this not to be a trick or an ambush. But if we have any troops to support us, Hannah will destroy them all. I don't know what she is, but she's more powerful than any of us can comprehend," Luke commented.

"So what do you think we should do?" Hallie inquired. "If we ignore Hannah, we might miss something important. If we go, we could be ambushed."

"I say we should go. I want to hear what she has to say," he decided.

"Luke, come on, what has she ever done to let us trust her on this?" Derek debated.

"She hasn't. But rules in warfare a clear. A white flag means negotiations or surrender. I'm pretty sure she's not surrendering so she must be wanting to negotiate something."

Brady and Bradley started protesting. Silena and Hallie threw arguments back at the twins. Luke stood in the middle of it all, staring down at the map of Manhattan below him. Hannah wanted to meet in Central Park. Even though she wanted to meet on the other side of it, the farthest away from the Empire State Building, it was still too close for comfort.

"We'll get there before her. We'll meet her at a point farther away than the place she wants to meet because the point she does want to meet us at is too close to the Empire State Building for my liking. I'll tell Prerana, Ana, and Vanessa to watch over Bryn while we go," Luke informed.

"What's happening?" Bryn mumbled weakly from the doorway. Everyone jumped in surprise.

"Bryn, what are you doing up? You should be resting!" Bradley chastised as he and Brady walked up to her.

"I've been asleep for eight hours. I need to get up. I'm fine," she insisted, albeit in a weak voice. "What's happening?"

Bryn walked up next to Luke and read the note on the table. He watched her carefully for any sign of what she believed they should do.

"We should go," Bryn said simply.

"What do you mean 'we'? As in you go too? That's insane," Brady retorted. "You nearly died eight hours ago because of that stupid stunt you did."

"That _stupid stunt_ is the reason Luke is alive," she growled.

"Forget that he's alive! What about you damn it! We don't want to lose our sister any sooner than we are!" Bradley snapped.

"What are they talking about?" Luke interrupted.

"They're worried I'm going to get myself killed is all. I've been taking a lot of risks lately and they don't like it. That's the end of that conversation. We're all going. We're the leaders of this thing and I'm not going to make myself look weak by not showing up. I'm going to change into different clothes because these are all bloody. Then we'll go. We'll take the dragons."

"I'll take Silena and Derek, Bradley can take Hallie, Luke can go with you," Brady said. "And no arguments."

Brady took his leave with Bradley trailing behind him. Hallie said she'd go call them down before they went to see Hannah. It left Silena, Derek, Bryn, and Luke alone.

Bryn broke the silence. "I'll meet you three downstairs outside. I'm going to go change before we leave."

She stumbled a little as she exited the room. Luke was instantly by her side in case she fell. She insisted she was fine and continued on her way.

"Bryn, wait, please," he requested. She surprisingly faced him. "We need to talk."

"Talk about what?"

"About everything going on between you and me."

"There's not much to say. We're allies and when this war is done, we go our separate ways. End of story. Now go downstairs. I'll meet you in a minute." Before he could stop her, she entered her room and shut the door. He looked up at the ceiling in defeat. How was he going to get her to listen to him? He'd been so harsh on her that he worried maybe she never would.

"She'll come around, she always does," Silena consoled from the doorway.

"What if I messed up too badly? What if she won't forgive me for what I said?"

"She loves you too much to not forgive you. Come on, let's go downstairs." Silena took Luke's hand in hers and led him downstairs. Bryn was soon to follow. She slowly climbed on Drogon. Luke could tell her leg pained her. He waited until she was settled into the saddle on the dragon before climbing up himself. He wasn't sure where to put his hands: on her waist or on her shoulders.

"Luke, what are you waiting for?" Bryn inquired, glancing at him from over her shoulder.

"Uh, nothing, nothing, just distracted," he lied. Luke wrapped his arms loosely around her waist. Drogon shot into the air. Luke's grip tightened on Bryn significantly. The three dragons soared over buildings and over Central Park. Having been unable to find another suitable spot to meet Hannah, the demigods reluctantly went to the original spot. Hannah was already there waiting for them. She had six cyclops with her. They stood on guard with their weapons but showed no signs of an imminent attack. Luke was still on edge though.

"Hello Luke, Silena, Derek, long time no see," Hannah greeted. She nodded at the others coldly. "Brady, Bradley, Hallie, Bryn."

"What do you want Hannah?" Silena demanded.

"Calm yourself. I'm not here to cause trouble. I'm here to request a day off from the war, to let the wounded rest and to reorganize my troops. You could probably do the same," Hannah explained.

"Why?" Bryn asked. "Why does someone as powerful as you need to reorganize?"

Hannah's nostrils flared. "Because I underestimated your love for the Jackson boy here. You're a good actress Bryn Winchester. But you know the consequences of your betrayal, remember our deal?"

Bryn wrapped her hand around Luke's arm and replied smugly, "Remember my token of loyalty? That means the consequences of my actions remain on myself, no one else."

"What is she talking about?" Luke whispered.

"Oh, you haven't told him? Shocking. Truly shocking. But the others all seem to know. So why keep it a secret from him?"

"Bryn?" Luke repeated more urgently.

"He will know at the right time. He doesn't need to know right now."

"Worried he might try to change it?"

"Not that he might. That he will."

"And how do you know that?"

"Because I know him."

"Do you? You've been gone for a year. People change."

"People change, but his fatal flaw won't."

"And what is your fatal flaw, Bryn?"

"I have more than I should. Is there anymore you want to talk about or are we done?"

Hannah stepped towards Bryn, getting right up in her face. The girls were the same height but Hannah seemed to loom over the daughter of Zeus. Luke tried to step protectively in front of Bryn but she made him stay in his place.

"Act all high and mighty as much as you want, but the truth is, whether you win or lose, you will lose either way. Remember that our deal made you my little bitch," Hannah growled.

"I'm not your little bitch. I'm just someone who knows what she wants and doesn't mind the consequences of getting it. Now go. I'll see you again, and next time? You're not going to live to see another day," Bryn snarled.

Hannah barked at her soldiers and strode away. When they were out of view, Bryn collapsed. Luke barely caught her in time. He carefully lowered her to the ground. Kneeling next to her, he asked, "Are you okay?"

Bryn began nodding but that turned into the shaking of her head. Brady and Bradley were deathly pale. Silena, Derek, and Hallie weren't even bothering hiding their depressed expressions. Luke was fed up with the secrets around here. He asked, "What is it that I don't know? What is this deal you made with Hannah that everyone but me knows about?"

Bryn shook her head. "No, I'm not telling you."

"Because you don't want to or what? Whatever you've done pertains to me so I you may not want to tell me, but I deserve to know."

"No, no, no, I'm not saying a word. I can't do it. I can't do it to you. You'll hate me," she breathed.

"Luke's right," Bradley said. "He deserves to know."

"You should tell him," Brady agreed. "He may've been an ass to you but he's been trying to make up for that. After all he's the reason you're alive after you killed the drakon."

"No!" she declared vehemently, standing up. "Go back to base. Leave me alone. Tell him yourselves if you want to but I'm not- I can't…"

"Bryn, are you okay?" Silena queried, taking a step towards her. Bryn's entire body convulsed as she clenched and unclenched her hands at her sides. Luke saw sparks flying off her fingertips. Hallie saw it too because she immediately said, "Bryn, your hands. You need to calm down."

"You're losing control of your powers," Derek remarked in shock. "How is that possible?"

"It happens when she panics or is about to have a panic attack. We need to stop pushing her," Hallie said.

"Go back. Just go!" Bryn pleaded. The others backed away but Luke stepped forward. Bryn took a simultaneous step back and held her hands up to tell him to stip. He had no time to react to the lightning that shot out from her hands directing into his chest. He went flying backwards, only stopping when Drogon caught him in his mouth. However the dragon didn't chomp down on him. Instead he was gently dropped onto the ground. Silena, Derek, the twins, and Hallie ran over to him, asking him repeatedly if he was okay. All he could do was look at Bryn.

The daughter of Zeus was staring at her hands in horror. Her eyes landed on Luke and a look of pure mortification settled onto her face. She began stammering, "I didn't mean- that wasn't- Luke… oh gods…" Bryn stopped herself from talking anymore and bolted into the woods.

* * *

**Uh oh, Bryn's having more issues. What do you think is going to happen? Let me know in a review :)**


	27. I Find Out The Truth

**YOU FIND OUT WHAT BRYN IS HIDING (for those of you who haven't figured it out yet. I know one person has so kudos to you! You know who you are!) Enjoy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Sometimes two people have to fall apart to realize how much they need to fall back together."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 27: I Find Out The Truth

Luke chased after Bryn with the others hollering at him to stop. He didn't heed their warnings. All he could think about was what was going on with Bryn, about what was so severe that it was making her lose control of her powers, about what was so severe that she couldn't speak of it.

For being injured, Bryn could still move quickly. It took a while for Luke to catch up and the only reason he did was because she tripped. He thought she'd get up, but she'd stay down. Her body was shaking which halted Luke in his tracks. It took him a moment to realize she was _crying_.

"Bryn?" Luke breathed in shock. She flipped over. Tears streamed down her face. Her chest rose up and down rapidly.

"No, get away from me. I don't want to hurt you again," Bryn pleaded, scooting away from him. He knelt in front of her.

"You're not going to hurt me," he told her softly.

"How do you know that? I just struck you with lightning _in the chest_! I sent you flying backwards! How do you know I won't hurt you again?" she cried.

Luke took her hands in his. "Because I know you."

"W-what?"

"I know you. You would never hurt me intentionally." He pulled her into a hug, cradling her body against his. Slowly she began to calm down, but the tears kept coming. "Bryn, what is going on with you? And don't tell me I can't know. I do if I'm going to help you."

She pulled away. "You can't help me Luke. No one can."

"You act as if you're going to die. You're not. And I _can _help you. I _want _to help you. You know my days are numbered. I never told my family or anyone else but you about my curse. So let me help you before I go. Please."

Bryn shook her head. All of a sudden, she became eerily calm. "You're not going to die."

"But my curse-"

"What are the two ways you can break a curse?" she interrupted.

"Well some curses are able to be broken. That's the only way."

"No… It's not."

A cold feeling was settling in his stomach. He had this dreaded feeling but why, he was unable to tell. "What do you mean?"

"There's another way. The curse, it can be… it can be transferred to someone else."

"Bryn what did you do?" Luke breathed.

Her face started getting red again. "I couldn't let you die. You have family and friends and-"

"And you don't? What about your brothers? Your mother? Derek? Silena? The Michaels? Mr. Drew? Hallie? What about them?"

"I made the deal with Hannah almost right after you were taken. The whole show of me getting stabbed, it was to make you think I was dead because I'd convinced Hannah that it would be easier for me to train the troops if I didn't have you searching for me. That plan kind of backfired… you knew I was alive anyway…"

"But those dreams, you told me you were dead," Luke pointed out, refusing to believe what she hadn't said but he knew what was true.

"It was the truth from a certain point of view. I'm dead, Luke. I'm going to die and no one can stop it. I convinced Hannah to take your curse away from you if I served her. She believed that my desire to stay alive was stronger than my loyalty to my friends. She was wrong. I knew it would be me that didn't make it out of this. The gods told me as much when they came that one October night."

"B-but why pretend you were dead? Why not tell us you were alive? How could you just leave us like that?"

Bryn bit her lip. "Because I'm a coward. I'm selfish… I couldn't bear the thought of seeing your face when I would've told you what I'd done. I knew Derek and Silena would be angry at me, and I thought you'd hate me. As for the leaving part, I never really left. I did see you in person once. The night you were in my mum's house. It was some Mist tricks that I made you think you were dreaming. The other dreams were actual dreams but that doesn't mean I wasn't real in them… then there was seeing you as 'Penn', there was yours and Derek's football games, Silena's graduation. I couldn't stay away Luke, no matter how hard I tried. Thera was at Camp Half-Blood because she was my intel on how you three were doing. D-did you really think I was strong enough to stay away from all of you?"

Luke ran his hands through his hair, trying to come to terms with this new information. Holding his head in his hands and staring at the ground, he asked, "I did. You've always been so strong. And you played the part really well, pretending to be Hannah's commander. But you broke your promise to her, right? You were supposed to serve her but you double-crossed her. So what happens now because you did that?"

"Our agreement was that the curse would go back to you," she replied.

Luke looked up at her. "So I'm cursed again?"

"No. That symbol of loyalty I was talking about, it's keeping you safe. As long as I wear it, you're safe. As long as I wear it, the curse will only affect me."

Luke shook his head. "But what if I don't want you to have my curse? Why, when you knew what was going to happen, why did you still come after me?"

"Because I l-" Whatever she'd been going to say, the words choked in her throat. She stared at Luke with desperate eyes. "Because I- I wouldn't have been able to live with myself knowing that I could've saved you and hadn't."

Luke glanced at her through his eyelashes, unable to bring himself to make full eye contact. "So it's over for you?"

"Yeah, it's over for me," she admitted softly, twisting her ring around her finger.

"What were you going to say before that? Before you said you wouldn't have been able to live with yourself if you hadn't saved me. Don't think I didn't hear it."

Bryn wiped tears off her face as she smiled sadly. "It doesn't matter. Not anymore."

Luke cupped her face, making her actually look at him. "Yes it does. It has something to do with why you saved me. What was it?"

"Gods Luke, haven't you figured it out yet?"

"Would I be asking you if I had?"

Her face heated up beneath his hands. Bryn's eyes roamed from his eyes to his hair to nose to mouth back to his eyes. It was as if she was memorizing every detail of his face, as if she was going to forget it at any moment. Her eyes began flitting between his eyes and his lips, making him wonder what exactly was going on in her mind. Sure when girls did that in movies, it meant that they wanted to kiss the guy, but what about in real life?

His question was answered when her lips pressed against his. Luke had no hesitation kissing her back. He felt her hands grabbing his shirt to pull him closer. The entire world stopped. Time didn't even seem to exist. Most people say the see fireworks when they kiss the person they love, but with Luke, he saw supernova explosions, much prettier and a hell of a lot more impressive. When they stopped, both were slightly breathless.

"Does that answer your question Sharkboy?" she whispered.

"What question? I don't remember any questions Cat Woman," he mumbled, giving her another short kiss.

"What have I done to you?" She laughed.

"Something wonderful. You should do it some more," Luke said. However he didn't go for more. Instead he said, "Can I tell you something?"

"What is it?"

"I love you. I should've told you a long time ago but I was worried you wouldn't reciprocate the feelings and then I lost you and thought I'd never get to tell you and I'm not making the same mistake twice."

"I know you love me. I've known for a while. And I hope you know I love you too. I would've told you before but knowing what was going to happen to me, I didn't want to date you and then end up dying on you and having you not… go and date other girls because you were upset over me or because you felt like you were cheating on me even though I was gone. And even after I died Luke, you didn't date anyone, you didn't even hook up with anyone. Why?"

Luke shrugged. "No girls could compare to you. Besides, believe it or not, it's kind of hard to find shared life experience outside of Camp Half-Blood."

Bryn chuckled. "I want you to promise me something."

"Anything."

"After I'm gone, I want you to find a girl who will treat you right. Marry her. Have kids. I want you to have a long, happy life where you grow so old you become the man on the street with the stories that all the neighborhood kids come see so they can listen to your wild tales of monsters and gods and-"

"A beautiful, kind, crazy daughter of Zeus who I'm in love with," he finished. Bryn stared at him forlornly. "Bryn, I won't love any other girl. I don't know if soulmates exist, but if they do, you're mine. And hopefully I'm yours."

"I don't want to die Luke. I don't want to put any of you through that again. I know what my death did to all of you the first time which is one of the reasons I tried to stay away after it. But at the same time, I'm glad we're here together, because I got to tell you what I've always wanted to."

"You're not going to die Bryn. I don't know how, but I _will _save you," Luke declared.

"Bradley, Brady, Hallie, they've tried to find a loophole. There is none. For the first time, I can't talk or fight my way out of this. Just try to enjoy what time we have left, okay? Promise me you won't try and find a way to save me."

"I…" Luke trailed off, unable to get the words out. How could he promise her that? How could he let her _die_? Suddenly he understood why Bryn took his curse from him. That's when he understood how helpless she must've felt when she first found out about his curse before she made the deal with Hannah. But this was her one last request. Luke wanted to make her happy, and if promising her he wouldn't try to save her would do that, then he couldn't see any other choice. Taking a deep breath, he said, "I promise."

* * *

**Do you think Luke is going to keep that promise or not? Let me know in a review!**


	28. Daddy Issues

**PLOT TWIST TIME WOOOO**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**There's nothing you could say that would shock me."  
****~Laura Prepon**

* * *

Chapter 28: Daddy Issues

**Bryn**

Although she hated herself for telling Luke, Silena, and Derek why she'd really left them, it also felt good to get it off her chest. It'd felt good having them prove her wrong after Bryn thought if she told them, they'd all hate her. Gods she'd been wrong.

Currently Bryn and Luke were walking to the briefing room, hand in hand. They'd been sleeping for the past twelve hours, trying to catch up on some much needed rest before the next battle. When they entered the room, the twins, Hallie, Silena, and Derek were standing around a map, debating on what battle strategies should be used this time.

"The troops are already mobilizing to their designated positions. They're just waiting for our word on what to do," Silena informed. She looked up at Bryn and Luke. "I'm assuming everything's okay?"

"Couldn't be better," Bryn replied with a smile. "So where are we at?"

"Like I said, the troops are heading to their positions. They just need our word about what battle strategy to use. Any ideas?"

"Hannah knows all of mine, I know all of hers. We have the ability to counteract all of each other's strategies… what about-" Bryn was cut off by the entire Empire State Building shaking violently. The seven demigods fell down into a heap on the ground. When the shaking stopped, Derek demanded, "What the hell was that?!"

Bryn was already running out of the room to the stairs. Luke scrambled after her with the others hot on his tail. She came out onto the observation deck and looked up. The clouds holding up Olympus were darkening to black. Something, or someone, was up there, and it was no friend to the gods.

"Hannah," Luke breathed.

"She lied to us. That whole white flag was a distraction so she could get up to the top without any of us expecting it," Hallie said.

"Not possible. We had people on patrol. They would've seen her," Silena remarked.

"Unless Hannah's been watching us this whole time," Bradley pointed out.

"And waited until the patrols were gone to make her move," Brady finished.

"We need to get up there," Bryn said. "Now. Derek, Hallie, you two ready to do joint shadow-travelling?"

"I've never been to Olympus!" they said simultaneously.

"Here, imagine this," Bryn told them, handing a picture of the main building.

"Holy Hera- what is that?" Luke asked.

"The gods' throne room. You can ogle it after we defeat this wench," she replied. Luke looked at her amusedly. "What?"

"I missed your vocabulary," he answered.

She bit back a smile. "Shut up."

The group held hands and closed their eyes. Bryn was so used to shadow-travelling from helping Hallie practice that it didn't bother her. Bradley was used to it as well. Brady, Luke, and Silena, not so much.

"Now I know how Harry Potter felt after he Apparated for this first time," Silena croaked out. Derek put a steadying hand on her. Bryn looked around. The path to Olympus was still there, meaning Hannah hadn't done too much damage yet, but that made Bryn worry about what the woman was actually doing.

"How could a daughter of Demeter do something like this?" Brady inquired.

"Let's ask her the mother herself," Bradley suggested.

"And how do we do that?" Derek commented.

Bryn pulled out her cellphone. "Like this. The gods figured it was time to get with the times and got cellphones. They said only call in an emergency. I would say this is an emergency."

"Hello?" a woman answered sharply on the other end.

"Lady Demeter? This is Bryn Winchester."

"What do you want?"

"We need to know about your daughter Hannah Floyd."

"She's my daughter, but she didn't take after me. She took on after her father," Demeter replied, sounding strange.

"Who's her father?" The goddess remained silent. "Demeter, your existence and your family's relies on you telling me who Hannah's father is! It's the only way my friends and I can stop her! Tell me now!"

* * *

**Derek**

The Charmspeak in Bryn's voice was so influential that Derek knew right away the goddess would have no control over her response. It scared him how strong, how great, how powerful she'd become. He'd always remembered from Greek mythology that the more powers a person had, the harder their fall was. Derek had feared his best friend would meet a bad end, but he'd never imagined it being her sacrificing her life, purposefully transferring a curse to herself to save a friend. He always thought she'd die in battle.

"Bryn?" The twins asked. She was staring at the ground, the cellphone still up at her ear.

"Bryn," Luke said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "What is it?"

With a shaking hand, she put her phone in her pocket. When Bryn looked up at her friends, her eyes were wide and something else Derek had never seen before in his best friend: fear.

"It all makes sense now, the reason why she was choosing underground places for everything and why she could teleport anywhere she wanted and-" Bryn rambled.

"Who is she?" Silena demanded.

"An immortal. Her father… he made her immortal. Demeter had no choice in having her."

"Bryn, what has you so scared though?" Hallie inquired.

The daughter of Zeus sighed. "Her father."

"Who's her father?" Luke asked. No one had any idea. It couldn't be Kronos, he'd been destroyed by Percy. Atlas was trapped holding up the world. Hyperion was a tree, Derek was pretty sure, somewhere in Central Park. None of them could have had kids and his mind was failing him at coming up with any other names about who it could be.

"You don't mean it's-" Brady began. Bryn nodded. He swore in Greek.

"Duh duh duh, we're dead," Bradley declared.

"Who's her father?!" Silena repeated.

Bryn turned to her. "Tartarus."

* * *

**PLOT TWIST NUMBER… SOMETHING DOWN ANOTHER ONE TO GO. Sorry for the short chapter but I really wanted to leave you on that cliff hanger. I'm evil, I know. New chapter is underway :) Review please!**


	29. We're Going To Need More Plans

**NEXT PLOT TWIST COMING UP HAVE FUN (DaughterofNyx0008 you're going to flip your shit because I told you I couldn't work this into the story but I did. I literally just went through all my comments trying to find our conversation so I could warn you specifically haha)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**A one-way trip. A very hard fall."  
**_**~Mark of Athena**_

* * *

Chapter 29: We're Going To Need More Plans

**Bryn**

"Okay, how do we defeat the daughter of Tartarus?" Hallie queried.

"No idea. So we do what we do best," Luke said.

"And what's that?" Bradley asked.

The Jackson boy grinned. "Improvise."

When he started to run off, Bryn grabbed him by the arm. "Improvise we will, but we also need a plan of sorts. Demeter gave me a chant for Hallie and Derek to say that will open a way to Tartarus. We just need to get Hannah down it."

"What's the chant?" Hallie questioned. Bryn handed them a piece of paper, saying, "It appeared in my pocket. Silena, Bradley, Brady, Luke, and I will create a distraction. You two get into the main room of the building and hide while you say the enchantment. Got it?"

The two Hades' children nodded. Luke rocked back and forth on his feet. "So now we improvise?"

Bryn nodded. "Now we improvise."

The Jackson boy let out a holler and started running towards the Olympus building with his sword raised above his head.

"You're going to get yourself killed!" Silena shouted after her brother. The Winchesters quickly followed. "Luke Charles Jackson! Are you an idiot?!"

Bryn snorted. "He's not an idiot, he just does idiotic things."

The two girls grinned at each other as they burst into the gods' home. Hannah stood in the middle, throwing things around. She turned around nonchalantly when the demigods entered.

"Ah! My favorite people! Where are the other two? I wanted a full house," Hannah said.

"Since they're not here, they're none of your concern. You want a fight, you got one," Luke growled.

"Luke Jackson, how you've changed. I remember the boy screaming in agony when I would hit him," Hannah mused. The air turned static as Bryn's anger ran through her veins. No one touched her friends.

"Miss Winchester, you really risked your life for, fell in love with, this wimp of a boy?"

"This 'wimp' blew up half your army. This 'wimp' endured your torture. This 'wimp' has saved my life. So if those traits are your definition of a wimp, then I will gladly risk my life and love this boy. And for the record, his name is Luke Charles Jackson. You best remember that," Bryn snarled.

"Why should I remember your puny names? No matter what happens Miss Winchester, you lose," Hannah laughed.

"Because we're going to be the ones that bring you down," Silena replied. They had to keep stalling Hannah for as long as possible so she didn't turn around. Hallie and Derek were hiding behind the fountain that Hannah stood in front of. They were barely whispering the chant for the one-way trip to Tartarus. Bryn couldn't hear them; she could only see their lips moving.

"You're going to bring me down? Girl, you don't even know what I am!"

"My _name _is Silena Elizabeth Jackson. You're the daughter of Demeter and the daughter of Tartarus. While I'm not going into how wrong that incestuous relationship is, I'll tell you this: you're going to be seeing your daddy real soon because we-" Silena motioned at the five of them, "- are going to send you to the hell pit you belong in."

"Oh really? Tell me how you're going to do that without the two people who can actually open a door up to Tartarus? You can't kill me. I'm _immortal_," Hannah pointed out. "But then again, the two that can send me there are here. Did you really think that I was oblivious to them sneaking in from the back?"

With a flick of her hand, vines threw Derek and Hallie into Bryn and Luke. Groaning, they all got up. Derek said, "Okay guys, plan B."

"I think we're going to need a plan C, D, E, F all the way to Z," Brady joked.

"He's new to our methods isn't he?" Silena queried.

"I did always teach them to have a plan," Bryn remarked,

"So what's our plan this time?" Bradley asked anxiously.

"What Luke said earlier: improvise. Charge!" Bryn yelled. She and Luke went at Hannah with their swords. She saw Derek drag Hallie away from the fight, figuring they were going to try and finish the chant. Silena and the twins were quick to follow their siblings. Bryn shot up into the air and flipped over Hannah. The twins flanked her. Silena and Luke stood in front of her.

"You really think you can beat me. How cute," Hannah said. She pulled out a sword that elongated fifteen feet in length. Hannah began growing larger and larger until she towered over the demigods. She had to be well over twenty feet. Luke made the first attack, slashing at her ankles. She jumped and he rolled away before he was stomped into the ground. He ended up next to Bryn. Bradley and Brady jumped up, slicing their swords at her arms. Hannah punched them in them in the gut. It was only thanks to their flying abilities that they prevented themselves from crashing into the marble pillars.

"Luke! Silena! Water wall!" Bryn shouted.

"Isn't the song called Wonderwall?" Luke commented.

Resisting the urge to slap him upside the head, she repeated as she pointed to the fountain, "WATER WALL!"

That seemed to register with him. Grinning, Luke thrust out his hands. Silena followed in suit. In a few seconds, a water wall surrounded the Jacksons, the Winchesters, and Hannah. Derek and Hallie were outside of it, working their magic to get the hole to Tartarus open.

"Impressive," Hannah praised. "You've all gotten very strong."

"Bradley, Brady, _fo̱tiá_!" Bryn ordered. Lightning cracked through the glass dome straight into Hannah. It blinded everyone for a few seconds. Once they were able to see again, Bryn saw Hannah on the floor in a daze. She nocked an explosive arrow in her bow and fired it. The detonation threw Hannah a few feet towards the water wall.

"BRYN! WE GOT IT!" Derek hollered. Luke and Silena instantly ceased the water wall they'd created. Hannah was only a couple feet from going over the edge but she beginning to gather her wits again. Derek and Hallie maneuvered their way over to their friends.

"We have three minutes before it closes!" Hallie informed. "Get her in there!"

"Gladly!" Bradley replied cheerfully. He fired an explosive arrow along with Brady but they were knocked away by a vine. Hannah stood up, glowering at the demigods. Her eyes were murderous.

"You _dare_ think you can beat me?!" she barked. "I am the daughter of Tartarus! YOU. CAN'T. KILL. ME!"

Time slowed down as Bryn commanded everyone to use their power of choice against Hannah as a visible barrier force came at them. Silena and Luke sent a jet of water each. Hallie and Derek sent a never-ending stream of hellfire. Brady, Bradley, and Bryn shot lightning out of their fingertips. Their attack hit Hannah right when hers hit them. Everyone went flying back. Bryn's whole body connected with a marble column and she passed out before she hit the ground.

* * *

When she woke up, Luke was hovering over her. She cringed as she sat up. "How long have I been out?"

"Just a few seconds," he answered, brushing a piece of hair out of her face. The two of them stood up. Derek and Silena were a few feet away from them. Brady, Bradley, and Hallie were sitting against a wall as far away as possible from the Tartarus hole that was still open. All of them were holding a part of their body: Hallie cradled her arm, Bradley held his leg, and Brady had his arms wrapped around his rib cage. Bryn didn't need to ask to know that they'd all broken whatever they were holding.

"When is it going to close?" she asked.

"In about a minute. We did it Bryn, we actually did it!" Luke exclaimed. But something was wrong. Something else was about to happen but what it was, Bryn couldn't place. Luke nudged her gently. "What's wrong?"

"I feel like we didn't win, that this isn't the end of it," she confessed, running a hand through her hair.

"Look, we sent Hannah down to Tartarus, her army is going to fall apart without her as their leader meaning we can go home soon and then maybe we can say screw what Zeus and Poseidon want and actually date? Does that sound like a pl-" Luke interrupted his sentence with a frantic yelp. A vine wrapped had wrapped itself around his ankle, dragging him to the Tartarus hole. Bryn scrambled after him, desperately reaching for his hand. She barely managed to grasp it before Luke slipped over into the hole. Bryn frantically held onto the edge. Silena grabbed onto her friend's wrist.

"Hold on!" the girl said in a panic. But when she started being pulled over the edge as well, Silena twisted her body so that she would be able to hold on. Derek slid over, nocking an arrow and firing it at the vine wrapped around Luke's ankle. The vine snapped. A scream echoed but got fainter and fainter. Derek grasped his girlfriend's hand. However, the weight from three demigods falling into Tartarus was too much for the son of Hades. He too had fell into the hole. Now the four of them dangled helplessly over the entrance to Tartarus.

"Bryn!" the twins cried frantically. She heard them slowly dragging themselves over but Bryn knew they wouldn't make it in time.

"Silena let me go. Save yourself and Derek. Luke and I will find a way out of here. Your parents did it once before. We can too," Bryn said.

"No!" Silena and Derek screamed vehemently.

"We're not separating!" Derek declared.

"You go, we go," Silena added, her voice trembling but resolute. The daughter of Zeus knew her friends would be unwavering in this decision. Taking a deep breath, she called out to her brothers. "Bradley! Brady! Take care of Hallie and make your way back to headquarters. Learn from the Jacksons on where to meet us for when we return! We _will_ see you on the other side! And kick Hannah's forces' ass! Do you understand me?!"

"Please just hold on a little longer! We're almost there!" one of them cried out.

"Do you understand me?!" She repeated.

There were a few seconds of silence before: "Yes!"

"Good. We'll see you soon!" Turning her attention to her friends, she said, "Whatever you do, don't let go of each other. I have no idea where we'll land."

Derek glanced down at her and with the slight nod of her head, the son of Hades let go.

* * *

**Reviews would be wonderful :)**


	30. How The Tables Have Turned

**I think I've waited long enough to post this :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**They hadn't survived so much just to get killed now."  
****~Percy Jackson, **_**House of Hades**_

* * *

Chapter 30: How The Tables Have Turned

**Bradley**

The hole to Tartarus had disappeared right as the twins reached it. They stared at the ground in despair, angry at themselves for letting the life of their sister slip through their fingers. They could've saved her had she not fallen into Tartarus. The twins, along with Hallie, Scott, and Ty, had found a way to save Bryn. They hadn't told her because they knew she wouldn't approve of the things they had to do to find the way to save her.

"Wh-what happened?" Hallie asked, staring at the ground with them.

"They're gone," Brady choked out. "They fell into Tartarus."

Hallie sank onto her knees in shock. "How?"

"I don't know. It all happened so fast. I don't know who went down first but I saw Silena go over the edge. Derek fired an arrow at something, then grabbed onto Silena. He went over too. Bryn called out to us, saying we had to kick Hannah's forces' asses, and find out where they're going to come out," Bradley explained quietly.

"No, no, no! This can't be happening! We had a way to save her! We can't save her when she's down there!" Brady ranted.

"Then we have to think positive. Bryn, Luke, Silena, and Derek are all down there. They're the strongest demigods of our generation next to us. They've been through a lot together. They'll make it back," Hallie declared.

"How can you believe that? They're in bloody Tartarus for Zeus's sake!" Brady exclaimed.

"Because right now, we still have orders from Bryn, and hope is the only thing we have left. Come on, we have some bad news to break to your parents and the Jacksons."

Slowly, the twins got up, solemnly following the daughter of Hades back down to the mortal world.

* * *

**Luke**

The fall into Tartarus was long, dark, and terrifying. If Luke hadn't had his friends with him, he might've died from sheer terror. None of them had any idea how long they'd been falling. It could've been a few hours or a few days or a few weeks. The tunnel seemed never ending.

"Light! I see light!" Silena shouted. Luke twisted his head around to see what she was talking about. It seemed like the light was approaching very slowly but he knew better. He knew they'd be crashing into the ground below if they didn't find a way to cushion their fall.

"Bryn! Can you slow us down?" he asked.

"I'm trying but I can't! I can't do it!" she cried.

"Let me try something!" Derek hollered. Shutting his eyes, the son of Hades concentrated on… something. Luke didn't know. Suddenly an obsidian rock shot out from the walls of the tunnel, rapidly spiraling down like a slide. Luke and Bryn landed on it first, still clinging onto each other. Derek and Silena somehow landed in front of them. While Luke was glad not to be free-falling into the pit of doom and the chances of becoming a human pancake had decreased significantly, he still felt sick from going round and round and round at breakneck speeds.

"Incoming!" Derek warned. The four demigods were launched into the air. Derek and Silena managed to stay together when they landed, never letting go of the other. But for Bryn, she lost her grip. The two demigods landed in different places. Luke crashed into a rock. Amazingly he didn't break anything but he was going to have some serious bruises from it.

Not realizing Bryn hadn't landed near him, he asked, "Bryn, you okay?"

When she didn't answer, he looked around. She was nowhere to be found. That was until Silena surfaced from the river next to him with an exhausted Bryn. His sister dragged his girlfriend onto the shore.

"What happened?" he inquired, cupping one of Bryn's cheeks and placing his other hand on Silena's shoulders.

"She fell in the River Acheron, the river of pain. I dove in after her the second I realized what it was. We're lucky it wasn't the River Lethe," Silena explained.

"Thank you," Bryn breathed. She blinked a few times before sitting up. "I-I don't understand. The curse, the ring… it was only supposed to affect me. Why did that vine grab Luke instead of me?"

"Maybe Hannah just had really crappy aim," Luke suggested, trying not to sound sheepish. Unfortunately, all three of his friends knew him too well.

"Luke Charles Jackson, what did you do?" Bryn demanded. Uh oh, she used his middle name. He was so in for it…

"I, uh, might've, um, taken your ring?" he stammered. Fury flared into her eyes before she smacked him on the chest.

"Are you mad?! Are you insane?! What were you thinking?! You could've died!" she yelled.

"I couldn't let you take on something that I brought on myself. You were always saving us. It was time I returned the favor. Besides, I still owed you one. At least we're even now."

"THAT DOES NOT INCLUDE STEALING MY RING YOU BLITHERING IDIOT!" she screeched.

"Guys, shush, I hear something," Derek whispered. Giving Luke a death glare that told him this was not the last he'd heard of her anger, Bryn fell silent. They hid behind the rock Luke crashed into before peering over it. Two girls stood there, one looking around and one looking annoyed. Both girls possessed a supernatural beauty to them with their bright red hair. Their eyes though were unsettling since they were solid black.

"I heard something over here, I'm positive!" the one looking around hissed.

"Fiona, you can't hear a thing! You're practically deaf!" The other woman responded, signing with her hands what she was saying.

"So are you Matilda!"

"Nonsense! I'm very beautiful. And I don't understand why you're talking about beauty when I'm telling you you're deaf."

Fiona rolled her eyes, frustrated by her friend. She proceeded to yell, "I'm telling you, someone screamed."

"It's Tartarus! Everyone screams here once in a while! Come on, let's just get to the Doors!"

"What are those?" Luke whispered.

"_Lamia_, vampiric demons. I've only ever heard stories about them. To see them in real life…" Bryn trailed off.

"They'll kill us if they see us, won't they?"

"Yes."

"So it's best we avoid them?"

"Yes."

"They're going to the 'Doors'. What if they mean the Doors of Death? That's the ticket out of here," Derek said.

"Well there's only one way to go and that's down. Hopefully Thanatos will be kind to us and have the doors close by," Silena remarked.

"He's a god, and considering gods are jerks ninety-nine percent of the time, I'm pretty sure those doors are as far away as possible from us," Luke replied.

"Silena's right about there's only way to go. Luke's right about the gods. Come on, let's trail them. I know they're practically deaf but be quiet and be on the lookout for anything that might attack," Bryn warned.

"I'm pretty sure the air is attacking us," Derek muttered, looking down in distaste at a small blister forming on his arm.

"Gods I wish Adler could fly us out of here," Bryn said as she and the others began following the _Lamia_.

"Adler, the giant, horse-sized eagle right?" Luke asked.

"Also a giant pain. I hate that bird," Derek said.

Bryn gave an amused smile. "Adler never liked Derek for some reason. But yes, Luke, that's the eagle. I don't think he can come in the Underworld though."

"What's your beef with Adler, Derek?" Luke queried, peering over Bryn's head at his friend.

"When we were going to rescue you from Hannah, Adler told Bryn he could fly us up to the spire to the entrance to the cave thing you were in. All I said was how could an eagle his size- mind you he looked a normal size at that time- could fly us up there. He got pissed off and never forgave me. That bird holds grudges longer than a child of Hades."

Luke laughed quietly at the story, finding it extremely amusing that Derek had beef with an immortal eagle. He slipped his hand into Bryn's, not because he was trying to be romantic but because he needed comfort. He felt extremely guilty for dragging his friends, quite literally, into a place that would most likely lead to their death. Bryn tightened her grip on his friend. She must've needed as much comfort as he did.

When Silena and Derek walked a few paces in front of them, Luke leaned down and asked, "Are you still mad at me?"

"No," Bryn answered. "I'm mad at myself. I never should've told you about the ring. This is why I should've stayed hidden. I brought you all into this."

"I do believe I'm the one who literally dragged you into this hell."

"Only because I told you the one thing that could possibly save my life. Do you know how stupid that was of you to take my ring? It could've killed you the moment you put it on!"

"Well then we probably wouldn't be stuck down here so you might have actually been better off if that had happened," he joked, trying to make light of the grim situation.

She didn't buy it. "It's not funny! It could've killed you instantly!"

"But it didn't. It's in the past now. We need to focus on the present and the future. Do you forgive me though?"

"Yes, but if you ever do anything like that again, I swear on the gods, I'll kill you myself."

"Only if you promise me you won't take this ring back from me."

"I think you can take it off. Tartarus is the curse, that's what Hannah told me."

"I thought you said you'd die if you took it off?"

"I don't know what would actually happen, but I knew the end result from whatever the punishment was would be death. I mean we're in Tartarus, Luke. The chances of us surviving this, of all of us surviving this, are slim to none. I-I'm scared," she confessed. "I've always known what to do in any situation but never did it ever occur to me that I might one day be trapped in Tartarus."

Luke came to a stop. "Hey, it's okay to be scared. We all are. These fears we have, it's what makes us human. It has also confirmed for me that you are actually a demigod and not a goddess in disguise."

An unexpected burst of laughter left her mouth. "You thought I was a goddess?"

"You do have an uncanny ability of popping up whenever we're talking about you, not to mention every time I thought I'd lost you, you somehow survived, not that I'm complaining. I love having you by my side. Oh, and you have some kickass powers."

"Says that guy who can breathe underwater, control water, and talk to horses and sea animals," she bantered.

Luke kissed her forehead. "Have hope. After all, next to each other, that's the only other thing we have."

A shout interrupted their conversation. The two demigods raced over to Silena and Derek, the latter being held by one of the _lamia_. The other _lamia _was standing in front of her friend and Derek, staring menacingly at Silena.

"Oh look, more food for us Fiona!" Matilda chirped gleefully.

"They're all very powerful. They'll give us a lot of strength, just the amount we need to make it to the Doors of Death," Fiona mused.

"You're going to the Doors of Death? So are we!" Silena said.

"You were. You're not going there anymore. You're our meal."

"But there's strengths in numbers right? I mean there's four of us and two of you. The four of us have a better chance of getting to the Doors before you two because we're larger. But if we go to the Doors of Death together, we all have better chances of survival. I've heard of the stories about how great of fighters your kind are. It would be an honor to fight alongside you."

Luke stared at his sister in shock. The strategy Silena was playing was a dangerous one, but played correctly, it could save their lives. Silena was much more devious than he had ever realized. Derek had picked up on her tactic too. Silena was merely distracting the _lamia_ so Derek could escape. The thing was, these vampiric demons were smart, fast, and deadly. One mistake could cost all of them their lives. But so far, neither of the _lamia_ noticed the obsidian rock slowly creeping up their bodies, anchoring them firmly to the ground.

"Hmm… you will not lead us astray?"

"Well I was thinking you two could lead the way. We've never been to Tartarus so if we lead the two of you, we might get us all lost, or worse, killed. I think it would be best if you led the way. What do you two think?" Silena looked over at Bryn and Luke. Both nodded eagerly.

Fiona tapped her chin. "Yes, yes that sounds like a good plan. You already know how strong my sister and I are, how well we can fight so even though there's four of you, I doubt you would try and double-cross us. Fine, we agree to your terms. Matilda, let him go!"

Derek was released. He hurriedly made his way over to Silena's side. Fiona attempted to walk forward but was stopped by the rock anchoring her to the ground.

"Sorry," Derek said with a shrug before the black rock covered both _lamia _entirely.

"That was brilliant Silena," Bryn complimented.

"Thank you. I didn't think we could fight them. They're usually too fast. Besides, I can barely lift my arms these blisters hurt so badly. I've been trying to find the River Phlegethon but so far, no luck."

"The River Phlegmthon?" Luke asked. "Like that icky stuff you get in the back of your throat?"

"No, that's just phlegm. The River Phlegethon, and in some legends, it is also called the River of Healing. I remember mom telling me about it at one point. We need to find it. It'll get rid of any injuries we have."

"How do we know which one is that river though? There are five down here: Styx, Acheron, Lethe, Cocytus, and Phlegethon," Derek remarked.

"Just look for the one that's made of fire," Bryn said.

"Did you just say fire?" Luke asked.

She nodded. "It's the river of fire. Shouldn't be too hard to miss."

"Derek, you're in the Underworld. Remember how you knew which directions were safe to go down in the tunnels on our first and second quests even though you had no idea what was actually down there? Maybe you can do that down here in Tartarus," Silena told him. Derek shut his eyes, mentally probing the area for the river they were searching for. When he opened his eyes, he smiled.

"To our right, just over this hill," he informed. The four demigods went as fast as they could without tiring themselves out. But sure enough, once they'd reached the top of the hill, they could see the fiery river below them. They went down to the banks of it, staring at the running flames.

"Um, how exactly do you drink fire?" Luke queried, cocking his head.

Silena scooped some fire into her hands and swallowed it. For a few terrifying moments, she was shaking and gagging, making Luke think that Silena had been wrong about the healing properties of the river. However, the girl regained her composure.

Shuddering she said, "That was far from pleasant. But on the bright side, my blisters are healing!"

Luke glanced down at his sister's arms. Sure enough, her blisters were fading away. Bryn, Luke, and Derek following in suit.

"Did it taste spicy to anyone else?" Luke inquired.

"It just tasted weird. Listen, we should stick next to the river so if we come across any monsters we need to fight and we get injured, we can hurry and heal up. Sound like a plan?" Bryn suggested. No one argued. The demigods set off again. No one said a word. They were all too engrossed in watching for any potential threat. One came soon enough.

"Mmm, tasty demigods. We haven't had a taste of their kind since the two that came all those years ago," a bat-like hag dropped in front of them.

"Oh yes, they looked like those two there," another one added, pointing at Derek and Bryn. Luke instinctively stepped in front on Bryn. He felt her turn around. He glanced over his shoulder only to find more of the demonic hags, staring at them with beady, hungry red eyes.

"What exactly are these things?" Derek asked.

Bryn was shaking as she answered, "They're the _arai_. The physical embodiments of curses."

* * *

**I hate the **_**arai**_** and the demigods are soon going to find out that they hate them too. I tried to make this a semi-long chapter since y'all did wait so long :) Reviews would be lovely (and would prompt me to write faster you know… just saying).**


	31. Ghost King and Repair Boy

**So has anyone on Tumblr seen those Dark!Percy headcanons? I actually really like those. I was looking at them last night on my tumblr page (I have multiple blogs: wisegirl502 is my main one and demigoddiaries502 is the main PJO one, and then the unknowntrilogy is the blog for this series!).**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Lots of death, huh? Personally, I'm trying to avoid lots of death, but you guys have fun!"  
****~Leo Valdez**

* * *

Chapter 31: Ghost King and Repair Boy

**Bryn**

The four demigods stood back to back with each other, swords elongated although Bryn knew they couldn't kill the _arai._ Whatever curse the _arai_ carried would be placed on whoever killed that particular _arai_. They were nasty suckers that were almost impossible to kill.

"Why are there so many?" Derek questioned, jabbing his sword when one of the old hags came too close to him. It leapt out of reach.

"A lot of curses have been placed upon us. I can imagine Hannah and Ryan had a few choice ones for me," Bryn said.

"How exactly do we kill them?" Luke queried.

"We can't. They have to kill each other," Silena replied. "I mean unless you don't mind have another curse placed on you, then go ahead a kill them. But it's a stupid idea."

"You're talking to the guy who tried to charge the daughter of Tartarus," Derek pointed out. "Do not encourage him."

"Hey!" Luke protested.

"The curses, they only hurt demigods. Any immortal that has the curse placed on them is almost immediately relieved of it because their body and power counteracts it. If only we had an immortal…" Bryn muttered. None of them knew any down in Tartarus that could help them, only ones who wanted to kill them. "Our best chance is to run."

Taking a chance, the demigods ran at the _arai_, sliding underneath them at the last minute. Amazed that'd worked, Bryn couldn't help but smile. She heard the hags screaming in rage behind them but didn't dare look back. Not until Silena gave a yelp. One of the _arai _had wrapped its leathery tail around the Jackson girl's leg, causing to slam into the ground.

"Get away from her!" Derek shouted, nocking an arrow and firing. The monster exploded into dust.

"Wonder what the curse-" Derek sneezed. "I wonder what the curse-"

Derek sneezed again. "It better not be-"

He sneezed. "What monster-"

Sneeze.

"-Would wish eternal-"

Sneeze.

"-Sneezing on someone?" Derek finished before sneezing again.

"On the bright side, you'll have some killer abs," Luke said. The son of Hades glared at him.

"Incoming!" Silena shouted. Multiple _arai_ dove at the demigods. Silena pulled out her sword and swung at one of them, killing it instantly. She stood up, only to fall back down again. "Guys?! Where are you?! I can't- I can't see!"

"Ooh the blind curse. Let's see, that was placed by a Cyclops you fought down in Mexico. There's a lot of their curses among us," one of the _arai _said. "Miss Jackson always had to see things to believe it so if she can't see anything, how can she believe it?"

Derek was kneeling down next to his girlfriend, sneezing out comforting words. Bryn had no time to focus on them though because one of the _arai _went straight for Luke. She shoved him out of the way and shot an arrow straight into the _arai's_ heart. It exploded with a scream. Bryn tried to say something but nothing came out. She tried again, but nothing.

"Bryn?" Luke asked, stepping towards her.

"The silent curse. Placed by Ryan London so she couldn't lie her way out of anything anymore or Charmspeak people into doing what she wanted. Something that has been so crucial in her survival her whole life," an _arai_ mused.

"Stay away from my friends!" Luke ordered, thrusting his sword at the closest hag. She vaporized into yellow dust. Immediately Luke began hiccupping. Rolling his eyes, he said, "Really?"

"Whdioosa?" Derek asked.

"What?"

Whdioosa?" he repeated.

"The curse of no hearing! Playing off his insecurity of feeling like he never belonged in your group because he felt unworthy. Only your words convinced him otherwise. Now when he gets those feelings, he can't hear you contradict them! That was one of Hannah's I believe," an_ arai _explained.

"Leave. Them. Alone," Luke growled, hiccupping at the end of his sentence.

"No, no, I think we'll have the two boys for dinner and the girls for dessert. Ladies, attack!" The _arai _dove at the demigods. Silena screamed as a tail whipped her back, cutting open her shirt and creating a nasty gash on her back. Bryn fired an arrow at that one, impaling it in the head. She jumped back and back, avoiding be hit by the leathery tail herself. She ended up far away from her friends, but she'd had quite a few _arai _follow her over. Bryn hit one _arai _with her sword before switching to her bow and firing an arrow at another one. Bryn's stomach growled, her throat became parched. Eternal hunger and thirst must've been one of them curses. But that wasn't the worst part of it. Bryn's legs gave out beneath her. She collapsed to the ground. Any attempt to get up was futile. The curse had caused her to become completely paralyzed. Only her face muscles worked. She couldn't scream out for help. She couldn't warn Derek about the _arai_ that was about to sink her teeth into his shoulder. She couldn't yell directions at Silena on how to avoid the _arai_. Bryn was completely helpless and useless.

"The curse of Hannah, daughter of Tartarus," an _arai_ said. "Now you cannot betray anyone, you cannot stab people in the back, you cannot do a single thing. You must watch your friends die in front of you."

Bryn started sobbing, but no sound came out. The paralysis was a curse Hannah had placed on her before she'd died, but the sight of watching her friends die was the result of Bryn breaking her promise to Hannah. It had to be.

For once in her life, Bryn had no idea what to do. For the first time in her life, she was truly, completely, helpless and useless. All she could do was watch as her friends started to become overwhelmed by the _arai_.

* * *

**Hallie**

Mr. and Mrs. Jackson hadn't taken the news well. Annabeth had passed out. Percy had caught her but fell to the ground in shock himself. Mrs. Winchester and Mr. Drew collapsed onto the sofa. Mr. and Mrs. Michaels stood stock still.

"Tar-Tartarus?" Mr. Drew stammered.

"Oh my poor baby girl," Mrs. Winchester whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Annabeth woke up. "Percy, our kids… both our kids… they're gone! They're down in- no! It's not right!"

"I know, I know," Percy said, his voice cracking. Hallie turned her head away from the Jacksons and Winchesters, unable to watch their pain. But even then, the Michaels were in her view. Derek's mother kept muttering his name. Mr. Michaels was hugging her, tears welling in his eyes, his face turning beet red.

"I'm sorry, mum, we tried to save her," Bradley whispered.

"We reached her too late. The hole closed up right when we were within reach," Brady said.

"It was Tartarus. It would've pulled you down too. Then you'd all be down there," Hallie said gently.

"No, don't be sorry boys. Hallie's right. If you two had tried to help them, you would've been dragged down into that hell too," Mrs. Winchester remarked. "She just- she never knew I was alive, did she?"

"Um, she knew for a year or so. She just… Bryn made a deal with Hannah, pretending to serve her and building an elite army for her, but her intentions all along were to fight for the gods and ambush Hannah. Bryn had sworn an oath on the Styx, so since she broke that, the penalty for that was death. We never told her you knew she was alive because she didn't want to meet you again and then die on you a little while later," Hallie explained. "She wanted to protect you. It took a lot of prodding just from the three of us to get her to tell us about what she'd done."

"Even as a little girl, she was always looking out for the welfare of others," Mr. Drew said with a sad smile.

"Bryn gave us instructions before they fell," Brady said.

"She told us to kick Hannah's forces' asses and then find the other entrance of where they're supposed to come out," Bradley added.

"The Doors of Death, that's where they'll come out," Percy declared.

"Where are they?" Hallie asked.

"No idea. It moves around. Last time it was in Italy. For all we know, they could end up in the middle of the Gobi Desert."

"The gods must know, right?" Brady queried.

"How exactly are you planning to get the gods to listen to you? They don't like helping demigods whenever they can help it," Mr. Drew pointed out.

"Because the gods owe us, Bryn especially. She protected their children from harm and became a double agent for them. They'll tell us," Bradley replied. He took out his cellphone and hit Zeus's number before leaving the room entirely. Hallie hurriedly told the adults that the gods had gotten with the times and had gotten cellphones, giving their children their number, but reminded them it was only to be used for emergencies.

Bradley came back a few minutes later. He looked ticked but said, "The gods will be here in a few seconds."

Sure enough, in less than five seconds, thirteen gods walked into their hotel room. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hera led them in, followed by Ares and Athena, Apollo and Artemis, Aphrodite and Hephaestus, Demeter and Hermes, Dionysus, and lastly Hallie's father: Hades.

"What has happened?" Zeus demanded.

"Bryn, Luke, Silena, and Derek have fallen into Tartarus. We need you to tell us where the Doors of Death are," Brady declared.

"How did they fall into Tartarus?" Hera asked. "The fools! Don't they know how deadly it is to demigods?!"

Annabeth spat, "They were saving _your_ thrones, _your_ asses."

"The only way for them to defeat Hannah was to open a portal to Tartarus and push her in it. A vine grabbed one of them and one by one, trying to save each other, they all went down," Hallie explained hurriedly before Hera zapped Annabeth into nothingness.

"Can't one of you go down and get them? You're gods for goodness sake!" Mrs. Winchester exclaimed. Zeus looked at her with sympathetic eyes.

"No, I cannot. Hades has control over that dominion but there are too many giants and titans and worse things that would be able to kill us down there," Zeus said.

"And you wouldn't risk your life for the people who saved yours?" Mr. Drew snarled. The air became electric as Zeus stared angrily at the son of Hephaestus.

"Watch your mouth, _boy_. My daughter is down there so don't think I don't care about this. I cannot do anything. However, I can tell you where the Doors of Death are."

"Where are they?" Brady questioned anxiously.

"The Gobi Desert."

"Wow, I was just guessing on that," Percy commented. The gods stared at him with annoyed looks, with the exception of Poseidon who was smiling and winked at his son.

"I'll give you the exact coordinates," Zeus said, writing something down on a piece of paper. He handed it to Bradley who opened it.

"This is in the middle of nowhere. How are we going to get there?" the twin pointed out.

"Ask Mr. Valdez, he should get you there. We must be going. There is still much to fight out there even though Hannah may be gone."

"What my brother means is thank you for saving our thrones and our existence," Poseidon said. "We are eternally grateful and when this war is truly over, we will call you up to Olympus to give you whatever it is that you want."

"Yes, yes, what he said," Zeus agreed. All the demigods closed their eyes so the gods could flash out of there.

"I forgot how annoying they were," Percy said once the gods had left. "Well, my dad is pretty cool."

"Who's Valdez?" Hallie inquired.

"Leo Valdez, also known as the son of Hephaestus and 'bad boy supreme'. Don't ask. We should go find him though. Despite my dislike for Zeus, I think he's telling the truth about Leo. Let's go find him." Percy helped Annabeth up before the nine of them went downstairs. They were greeted by a horde of wolves. Lupa stood regally in the middle.

_I sense great distress. What has happened? Where is Bryn?_ Lupa queried. _She said she'd meet us here. I apologize for the time it took us to get here. We encountered quite a few enemies along the way._

Hallie answered. "She fell into Tartarus with Luke, Silena, and Derek. We're on our way to meet them now, on the other side of the Doors of Death."

_My apologies. I pray they make it back. For the Jacksons, returning from Tartarus runs in their blood. They will most definitely survive._

"What do you mean?"

"She means when Annabeth, Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel, Frank, and I were fighting Gaia, Annabeth and I fell into Tartarus. We've tried to suppress those memories as best we can. They're not exactly cheerful," Percy said quietly. "Silena and Luke knew, but not much. We told them about the River Phlegethon and about our friend Bob and the giant Damasen, but nothing in detail. We never thought-"

"-they'd end up in Tartarus," Hallie finished. "It's okay, Mr. Jackson. None of us thought it would happen."

_What is going to happen now? _Lupa asked.

"Brady, Bradley, and I are going to head to the Gobi Desert where the Doors of Death are to open next. We're to find Leo Valdez so he can help us."

_What would you like us to do?_

"There's still battles being fought and while the enemy ranks are disappearing, our troops are tired and they're weakening. They could use some fresh fighters. Split your troops up and go help the demigods out. Prerana, Ana, Vanessa, Scott, and Ty will be staying here, although they don't know that yet. They will be in charge until we get back."

Lupa nodded her head and left with her wolves behind her. The demigods stepped outside, calling for Leo. He appeared a few seconds later with Calypso by his side.

"Hey guys, what's up? What's the long faces for? You okay Aquaman? Wisegirl?" Leo prodded.

"No, Luke and Silena fell into Tartarus along with Bryn and Derek. Zeus told us you could help these three get over to the Gobi Desert," Annabeth said.

Leo paled. "Oh my gods, I'm so sorry. Yeah, I have something that will help. It's back at my house. Calypso dear, would you teleport us there?"

Calypso nodded. She snapped her fingers. Suddenly Hallie, the twins, Leo, and Calypso were all inside a massive warehouse with a gigantic ship inside it.

"You expect us to sail all the way to the Gobi Desert?" Brady stated.

"We're sons of Zeus and she's a daughter of Hades. The last place we should be is on the bloody ocean," Bradley said.

"Oh it doesn't sail on water, it sails in the air too. Calypso and I will go with you since I'm best at steering and controlling it and she goes because it's always nice to have an immortal on your side, am I right?"

"We're coming too," a gravelly voice said from the shadows. Everyone looked in the direction of its owner. A tall, lean, pale, dark-haired man stepped out. He wore an entire outfit of all black, from the jacket to the shoes. His eyes were dark brown. The man that stepped up behind him was the complete opposite with his blonde hair, bright blue eyes, tanned skin, white shirt, and khaki shorts.

"Who exactly are you?" Brady queried.

"Hey, Ghost King! Long time no see buddy!" Leo exclaimed.

The Ghost King rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you too Mr. Spock. My name is Nico Di Angelo. This is my husband Will. We've been sent to help you."

* * *

**I'm so happy to be bringing Nico and Will into the story! I hope you enjoyed it!**


	32. We Trust a Titan

**Okay, here's the next chapter y'all. I'll try and stop waiting a long time to post until a major cliffhanger happens because y'all know I'm going to pull a Riordan if I can :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Trusting is hard. Knowing who to trust, even harder."  
**_**~Poison Study**_** by Maria V. Snyder**

* * *

Chapter 32: We Trust a Titan

**Luke**

Panic floored through Luke when he lost sight of Bryn. Fury tore through him when he saw her lying on the ground, seemingly immobilized and surrounded by _arai_ about to go in for the kill. He nocked an arrow and sent it flying at one of the monsters which vaporized instantly. The two remaining _arai_ hovering over Bryn turned their attention on him. Luke led the _arai _away from Silena who was screaming for help, and Derek, who had fallen to the ground in a heap, writhing in pain and clutching his shoulder.

"You want a fight?! Come and get me!" Luke shouted in rage. He slashed his sword at the hags but they jumped out of reach. They started dive-bombing him but leaping away from his sword at the last second. He quickly figured out they were purposefully trying to tire him out, to make it easier for them to go for the kill.

And it was working. He felt his blows becoming slower and weaker. It frustrated him because no matter how hard he tried, his body refused to use all of its strength. Finally, one of the_ arai_ bit him on the leg. Luke stabbed it in the neck before falling to the ground. He heard their mocking laughter, their insults and their words. They wanted to tear him down physically and mentally before they killed him. They fed off his pain. He hated this feeling. He hated feeling like he was going to die a coward. He hated knowing he was going to die on his knees, not even fighting. This wasn't how he wanted to go. This _wasn't_ how he was going to go. Luke was going to make sure of it. A red haze descended over his vision.

If only he had a river nearby, one that wouldn't kill him. The River Phlegethon, while it was a river, it was made of fire. It wasn't liquid. Luke wouldn't be able to control it. What else was liquid around him then? His mind worked a mile a minute until he saw the blood seeping through his clothes. Blood was a liquid right? Luke remembered reading somewhere that the human body was mostly water. Was it possible? He knew Poseidon wasn't god of all liquids, just water, but most liquids were mostly water right? It was worth a shot and if it meant saving his friends, then it was worth everything.

Luke imagined the blood running through the _arai's _veins, giving them life, allowing them to continue torturing Luke and his friends.

"Wha-what is he doing?!" an _arai _shrieked, clawing at her chest. "I can't- breathe!"

"No! Son of Poseidon! No!" another one cried.

"You're as cruel as the gods!" one choked out.

"Well at least I know where I get it from," Luke spat, only focusing harder on his task. He felt something inside him break, as if glass shattered within him. But then, the _arai_, whose faces had been pale and white were now beet red. None of them could breathe. One by one, they exploded. One by one, their curses fell onto Luke. He didn't care though. He staggered up, helping Derek and Silena up before running over to Bryn. Silent tears fell from her eyes. She was crying but no sound was coming out. She looked up at Luke in terror.

"Are you okay? Where did they hurt you?" Luke asked. Bryn only mouthed a few words.

"What's wrong with Bryn?" Silena queried, coming up next to her brother, clinging onto Derek who had led them over.

"She can't speak and I think- I think she's paralyzed," Luke replied. "We need help. We need-"

A drop of blood fell onto her face. And another one. Luke touched his face, feeling blood coming out of his nose.

"If someone placed a curse on me for a bloody nose…" Luke began until he tasted blood in his mouth. What was happening to him?

"Help. We need help, somebody…" Luke trailed off, feeling weak. He collapsed next to Bryn.

Suddenly a massive shadow loomed over Derek and Silena. Luke had no time to warn them of the silvery giant before it laid its hands on their heads.

"Owie," the giant said.

"What the- I can hear again!" Derek exclaimed. He turned around and stumbled back from the giant.

"Bryn! Luke! Oh my gods!" Silena cried. She knelt down next to them before realizing something had saved her vision. She faced the giant, paling at the sight of him. "Who-who are you?"

"Iapetus, but you can call me Bob!" The giant said cheerfully. A skeleton kitten crawled onto his shoulder. "And this is Small Bob!"

"Hi. Um, look, you were ever so kind to help me and my boyfriend with our curses. Could you… maybe help them as well?" Silena motioned to her motionless friends.

"Yes, yes. Bob will help them!" The silver giant placed his hand on Luke's head first. He made a face and said, "Too many curses on this one. I cannot heal him from all of them but I can slow the poison in him. But I know someone who can heal him fully! I will take you there!"

Luke felt his body be lifted him and gently tossed over Bob's shoulder. Bryn hung limply over the other one. Luke reached out for her hand but he felt a numbness in his body. He could still feel heat and the motions of everything, and knew his muscles still had the ability to move, but he just couldn't move them. Whether it was from the venom running through him or whether it was from a different curse, he had no idea. All he cared about was getting Bryn, Silena, and Derek to safety, and hoping that trusting this Titan to lead them to that safety place was not a bad idea.

* * *

**Hallie**

Travelling by flying boat was a mode of transportation Hallie quickly realized she hated. Not only was she getting motion sickness, but she hated being in the air, in Zeus's territory, especially since she was a child of Hades. Just because she'd helped push the daughter of Tartarus back to where she belonged did not mean Zeus had given Hallie permission to travel in his territory. Holding hands with Bradley helped a little bit. He had this effect that subdued her motion sickness for a bit. Maybe it's because he was a child of Zeus. Hallie remembered Bryn telling her how Luke could stop her seasickness by holding her hand. Maybe Bradley could do the same thing as Luke just with motion sickness instead…

"Hey, we're going to be stopping at my house for supplies in a few moments. I thought you might want to get off the boat," Bradley said. Hallie hadn't even heard her boyfriend come in her room. She'd been too busy focusing on trying not to think about the rocking of the air boat. All she could do was nod as he helped her up and out of her room. Brady was waiting for them at the ladder hanging above his and Bradley's house.

"Ladies first," Brady said.

"I think I might fly her down. Motion-sickness is getting to her," Bradley told his brother.

"Sure it's not because you want to hold her close to you?" he joked. His goofy grin quickly disappeared when Hallie shot him a death glare. Her boyfriend smirked before jumping off the boat with his girlfriend held tightly in his arms. She shut her eyes on the way down, only opening them when she felt her feet hit solid ground. Bradley helped Hallie indoors where she promptly collapsed onto the sofa. The world was still moving, it still felt like the world was rocking beneath her feet. Bradley knelt down in front of her, asking, "Can I get you anything?"

"Water? I think I can stomach it now. Maybe…" Hallie mumbled. Giving her a kiss on the head, her boyfriend disappeared in the house to grab what she'd requested. She took the time to glance around the room, partially out of curiosity and partially to find a way to ignore her still raging motion-sickness. The wall to the right had a beautiful stone fireplace. The mantle above it had trophies from the twins' activities and a vase of gorgeous flowers in the middle of it all. On the rest of the wall was pictures of Mr. Drew and Mrs. Winchester, the twins, and even some of Bryn when she was a little girl. The wall to her left was relatively plain with just a television in the middle and a picture on either side of it. The wall with the doorway had built-in book shelves on each side of the door. There was no space on either book shelf. Hallie saw everything from classics such as _Pride and Prejudice _and _War and Peace_ to current young adult novels like _The Mortal Instruments _and _The Infernal Devices_ to informational books, a lot of them being those ones that had 'For Dummies' in the title. Hallie even saw one that said _Mythology for Dummies_. It was amusing that demigods would own a book like that since they actually knew some ancient Greeks, and in particular the gods.

"Here you go," Bradley said, handing her a glass of water and sitting down next to her. She gratefully grabbed it and took a sip. Brady, Nico, Will, Leo, and Calypso could be heard conversing in the kitchen. They were arguing about Festus or something. Hallie couldn't quite understand what was going on.

"So why do you have the _Mythology for Dummies_ book?" Hallie inquired, taking another sip of her water. Bradley laughed.

"That was a gift one of my mom's coworkers gave us for Christmas when he found out that Brady and I were all into the Greek and Roman gods. Mom, dad, Brady, and I took it upon ourselves to read it as a family and make notes, a.k.a. corrections in the book to make it more accurate, mostly when they were talking about the gods and stuff. Hera got mad at one of the notes we wrote about her and had a pile of cow dung sent to our house and it kept appearing in our shoes for a month. That was not fun. But still totally worth it."

"Why did she stop putting manure in your shoes?"

"Zeus told her to stop. I don't see father often and he's definitely not perfect, but it is helpful that he's the leader of the gods."

Hallie smiled, glancing over at the picture wall. There was one of the twins in matching suits that caught her attention. "When was that?"

"That was the day we went and met the Queen. Did you know she's related to Athena far down the line?"

"Really?"

"Yeah! Isn't that cool?"

"Does she know that she is?"

"Yes, and she figured out Brady and I were kids of Zeus when we accidentally shocked her when we shook her hand because we were nervous. Can I saw awkward?"

"What about that picture? Is that Bryn?" Hallie asked, pointing at the one at the top middle of the wall.

"Yeah, that was the day before she was kidnapped by the Cyclops. She went with mom and dad to the London Eye. That's her on one of the carriages. The one next to it is her at her first birthday party. I know she probably doesn't remember that but when we get her back, Brady and I intend on showing her all of this, so she knows how much she was loved and missed here. Brady and I always wanted to meet her. We'd come down here at night and make up stories about our big sister, what she was like and what she was interested in."

"What did you think when you met her?"

"At first she was the complete opposite of what we imagined her to be. I mean from the pictures you see this sweet, innocent girl who looks like she couldn't hurt a fly. Brady and I imagined her to be like that, but still strong. We imagined her as a lover, not a fighter, and we thought that she would be more outgoing, friendly to strangers. When we met her the first time, she tried killing us, albeit we did kind of kidnap her from her room. We didn't know she was our sister at the time… but when we did realize who she was, we were kind of stunned. I mean Bryn was reserved, calculating, and looked like she'd kill you if you even looked at her the wrong way. Funny thing is, even though she's like that, she's also how Brady and I always imagined she'd be. She's still outgoing at times, especially around people she knows. She was always kind to strangers unless they gave her a reason not to be. And she's actually more of a lover, she just didn't have many people to really love while she was at camp. I mean she loved the campers and I know she'd die to protect them but I mean like truly loved someone as family or like the way she loves Luke. Bryn fights for what she loves."

"Well when we get her back, I know she can't wait to see her home again. Who knows, maybe she'll come live here again," Hallie said.

"You think? Even though Luke, Derek, and Silena are back over there?"

"She'll probably split up her time in both places," Hallie remarked. "I mean she has two different families now: her real one and her adopted one, both of which hold huge places in her heart. Bryn's good at figuring things out though so she'll find a way to maximize her time with both of her families. Maybe she'll be like Persephone, six months here and six months over there. Besides, she has me and Derek to shadow-travel her anywhere she needs to go."

"For a daughter of Hades, you're very optimistic," Bradley chuckled.

"I must've gotten that from my mom because I know I didn't get it from my dad! Come on, I think I hear the others getting ready to leave and I have this insane courage right now to get back on that dreadful boat so let's get on there now before that courage disappears."

"My boat is not dreadful!" Leo shouted from the kitchen.

"Honey, she gets motion-sickness terribly. I don't think she means the actual boat itself is dreadful, just what it causes her," Calypso consoled. Leo muttered something that Hallie couldn't hear but she was grinning. Leo Valdez, even though he was probably only in his late thirties or early forties, still acted like a teenager, a very fun, very loud, very sassy teenager.

"My lady," Bradley said, bowing with his hand outstretched for her. She gladly took it before he escorted her back to the ship, flying her up to the deck so she didn't have to climb the ladder.

"Hallie, if you ever need a reprieve of that motion-sickness, let me know, I think I might be able to help," Will offered kindly.

"Thank you Mr. Di Angelo. I appreciate it. I think I'm going to go back downstairs to my room and get some sleep. That seems to help."

After Bradley escorted her down to her room, he said, "I'll see you later. Brady wanted to talk to me about something."

Giving Hallie a kiss on the cheek, the Winchester disappeared and the daughter of Hades collapsed onto the bed, determined to fall asleep before the boat started moving.

* * *

**Poor Hallie with her air-sickness. Hope you liked it and sorry for the late posting! Reviews please :)**


	33. I'm Housed By A Giant

**Sorry I've been so bad about updating- I'm in my second year of uni and I have so much going on. I have a reflection due next Monday, an essay due next Wednesday, and an exam next Friday. Next week is really going to suck… so please forgive me. I promise I haven't forgotten about you!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that."  
****~Martin Luther King Jr.**

* * *

Chapter 33: I'm Housed By A Giant

**Bryn**

Being paralyzed and unable to do anything as you watched your friends die was the worst possible thing Bryn had ever experienced. Waking up to find two of her friends talking to a giant that epically dwarfed them and having her boyfriend passed out beside her was the second worst possible thing she'd ever encountered. Well, that was up until Bryn realized she could move. Derek saw though and was instantly by her side.

"Hey! You're up!" Derek exclaimed, rushing to her side.

"Wh- what happened? Where are we? Who's he? Why's Luke unconscious?" Bryn asked in a rush, scrambling up into sitting position. Silena made her way over to Bryn's side. The giant stood up, making the daughter of Zeus feel like an ant. She realized he was big but not _that_ big.

"Easy, friend, I am not going to hurt you," the giant said.

"Who the Hades are you?" Bryn demanded.

"This is Damasen," Derek explained. "He's a friend. He helped Silena and Luke's parents when they were trapped down here."

"What about Luke? What happened to him? Why is he unconscious?!" Bryn cried.

"Hey, calm down, it's okay," Silena consoled. "He took on a lot of curses saving us. I don't know how but he destroyed all the _arai_."

"How do you not know how he did it?!"

"Well I was blind, and Derek was deaf and not facing Luke. You were the only one facing his direction so you're the only one who could've seen anything he did."

"But all I saw- he was on knees. He didn't do anything. He couldn't have… right?"

Silena and Derek shook their heads, but when Damasen remained silent, Bryn knew he was hiding something. She fully intended on finding out later when Silena and Derek weren't around.

"What curses did he take on?" Bryn questioned.

"Um, too many for me to name but a particularly nasty one is Boomslang venom. It made him bleed from different orifices of his body. I mean I can't tell you who cursed him with that one but they sure knew their torture techniques," Damasen remarked.

"Ryan London. It had to be. That was his specialty," Bryn said. "I would love to kill him myself."

"Once you get back to earth, you can have the chance."

"Oh I would love the chance, but I can't. Luke killed him… some time ago. I have no idea how long we've been here. Feels like forever though."

"At most a week. That's the best I can venture," Damasen replied.

"How are you feeling?" Derek inquired.

"Um, you three are okay. I can move. I can speak. So yeah, I'm okay."

He brushed a piece of hair out of her face. "You sure?"

Bryn nodded. "Yeah. What about you two? No side effects?"

"No, just tired. We wanted to stay up until you woke up."

"You two get some sleep. I'll stay up for a bit. I'll be fine." After a little bit of debating, Bryn won out. Silena and Derek crawled into Damasen's bed which easily fit the three of them. In fact it could probably fit ten more people of their size Bryn thought, but she didn't say that. Her brain was scrambled from everything that had happened so she decided keeping her mouth shut was probably the best idea for a change because she really had no idea what was going to come out of her mouth.

Bryn sat down in the chair Derek had previously occupied. Damasen sat across from her. Within seconds her friends were asleep. The giant looked at Bryn and said, "So what is on your mind young one? I can sense there are many questions you desire to ask me, ones you did not want to ask in front of your friends."

Bryn bit her lip. The giant had given her no reason to trust him but on the contrary, he'd also not given her a reason. If he betrayed them, she'd kill him. Bryn had no idea how she did that, but she would. She was sick of immortals bossing her around. Taking a silent, deep breath, she began her barrage of questions. "Who exactly are you first of all?"

"I am Damasen, the giant of Gaia and Tartarus to oppose Ares, or Mars I guess your brothers would call him. I guess you could call me the bane of Ares, but I'm more of a lover than a fighter. That did not settle well with my parents."

"How in Hades' name do you know my brothers?" Bryn growled. The air crackled with electricity. Her friends stirred but didn't wake up.

"You and your friends are well known not just on Olympus, earth, and Hades' realm but here as well. The monsters down here… let's just say they gossip. I overhear many things." Then, with a small smile, he added, "Also, your friends told me about everything you've all been through. That's mostly how I know. I asked for a story in return for my hospitality towards you."

"Where is the silver Titan? The one that brought us here?" Bryn questioned after a few seconds of calming herself down.

"He disappeared after he brought you here, but he will be back before you leave. He is mentally connected to Luke and Silena because of their dad and mother." Damasen glanced over at the Jackson kids. "They remind me much of their parents. Silena, she looks like Percy, but with Annabeth's eyes. It's the opposite for Luke. Funny how genetics work."

"Earlier when we were talking about what Luke did to destroy the _arai_, and I said Luke couldn't have done anything in the position he was in, Derek and Silena agreed but you stayed silent. Is there a way he could've destroyed the _arai_ without touching them?"

Damasen nodded. "Yes, but I think deep down you knew that. Therefore my question to you is: why ask me if you already know?"

A cold feeling settled in her stomach. "I knew he'd changed after what I did, but I don't think I realized how much. The Luke I knew before, he never would've… he couldn't have even thought about the possibility of what he did, let alone actually going through with it. I'm scared for him. I'm starting to believe I'm also scared _of _him."

"I have not personally met him, only healed his wounds, but when he was brought to me, all he was murmuring was one word: Bryn. Your name. Despite your fear of him, I do believe whole-heartedly he would never hurt you. Not intentionally at least. You should fear his power more than him. The power he has discovered, it could have… dangerous consequences."

"What kind of consequences?"

"Luke has a light in him. You all do. You're all good. But sometimes that light can be taken over by the dark. You have messed with darkness in your life before. I could feel it."

"When I was working for Hannah, at times I felt myself slipping into her spell, believing that maybe she was a better decision than the gods, but then I remembered my family and it knocked me to my senses. I'm not proud of the things I've done in the past year, but I did what I thought was necessary to save my friends. Unfortunately, I did not account my friends' loyalty into the equation or else I would be the only one down here. They would be safe up on earth. But that's not important anymore. We can't change the past. I do want to ask though, you felt that I'd battled darkness before. Did you feel that with Luke?"

Damasen hesitated, which Bryn took as a bad sign. She was right. "With you, I felt that you'd experienced before but no longer are. With Luke, I sensed him battling it currently, and it's been going on for a while. Not too long, but longer than he's been in Tartarus."

"He was destined to die when Hannah cursed him but I took the curse off of him, but never told him. I wonder if his battle with darkness began when he was cursed…"

"It does not matter when it began, only that he can fight it. I'm sure you've figured out that the darkness makes you evil. Your acquaintance, Ryan London, was full of dark. I could feel it just through the stories."

"You think Luke is becoming evil?" Bryn squeaked, her heart racing at the thought of him becoming someone she had to fight. The thought petrified her.

"Evil is not born. It is made. Luke is surrounded by light, not to mention his morals keep him on a relatively straight path. But his loyalty to his friends, it will sometimes make him blur the lines between good and bad to save you. His encounter with the _arai_ is an example of that."

"What do you suggest I do? I can't have him going around making people's blood go so fast that they spontaneously combust!"

"No, you can't. Talk to him about it, privately. He will listen to you."

"How do you know that?"

"Because in all my life as of being in Tartarus, I have seen many a demigod get trapped down here, but I've only ever seen your situation twice. Once when Percy fell down with Annabeth because he swore they would never be separated again. The second is when Luke willingly took his curse back from you so you would not have to endure this. The loyalty of your boyfriend and your friends will be the reason you survive."

"Damasen, the prophecy said one of us must fall. I'm pretty sure it wasn't referencing the fall to Tartarus."

"Could it be one of the other three? Your brothers or Hallie?"

"They're on earth, we're down here. What do you think the chances are of all four of us surviving everything down here?"

"I think they're higher here than they are up there. You, Luke, Silena, and Derek have fought together for years. How long have you four been fighting with those three? Not near as long. You can do it better since you've been with them longer but your friends down here haven't. The equilibrium is thrown off. You are in more danger fighting as seven than as four."

Bryn let that settle in. Damasen was right. When it had been the seven of them, the group had been thrown off. There was too much debating and arguing. When she was in one of the groups, it wasn't near as bad. Brady, Bradley, and Hallie had never really fought anything without Bryn by their side. Perhaps they really were in more danger than she and her friends were down in Tartarus…

And then with Luke, she had no idea when she could talk to him about what he'd done, but she needed to soon. She needed to get that darkness out of him.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed :)**


	34. We Head to the Doors of Death

**Sorry to keep y'all waiting- I've gotten back in the habit of updating the stories in a specific order so I don't end up not updating a story for a year or something like that (which has happened twice I'm very sad to say…). But for you Lukyn shippers, you get some fluff :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**I try not to think. It interferes with being nuts."  
****~Leo Valdez, **_**Mark of Athena**_

* * *

Chapter 34: We Head to the Doors of Death

Silena and Derek were more sleep deprived than they realized because they slept for ages, not even waking up when a drakon came to attack Damasen. Luke, on the other hand, did, and the first thing out of his mouth was Bryn's name.

Bryn couldn't help but smile at the sound of his voice, partially from relief that he was okay and partially from hearing him say her name as if he cared about no one or nothing else but her.

"I'm here," she replied, getting out of the chair that was way too big for her. Luke struggled to sit up but Bryn stopped him. "Take it easy. You had some nasty curses put on you. Last time I saw you awake, blood was coming out of your nose and eyes."

"Really?" Luke blinked in surprise.

"Yeah." She stroked his hair back, trying to entice him to lay back down. It didn't work though. He sat up (after a lot of effort) and leaned against the wall.

"Gods it's good to see you moving and talking," Luke said, giving her a smile. "I thought I'd never hear your sassiness again."

Bryn chuckled as sat next to him, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm not letting you off that easily."

"I wouldn't want you to." Luke kissed her on the head. "So where are we?"

"Have you ever heard of the giant Damasen?"

"Yeah, he was supposed to be the bane of Ares or something."

"This is his place. He's giving us shelter. He's out right now. You'll meet him later." The two of them fell silent but Luke picked up on the turmoil in Bryn's mind, as he usually he did.

"What's bothering you?" Luke asked looking at her.

"We're stuck in Tartarus. Pretty sure that's a good enough explanation," she replied. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't everything. How was she to bring up the topic that Luke had pretty much killed the _arai_ by controlling their blood? It wasn't exactly an easy thing to bring up.

But whatever thoughts were about to run through her head disappeared when Luke kissed her. His hand cupped her face, pulling her closer. When they broke it off, Bryn whispered, "What was that for?"

"To remind you that whatever is going on with you, no matter how big or small it is, I'm here to help you," he replied. "Also I just really wanted to kiss you again."

Bryn sighed, unable to figure out how to bring up what she wanted to talk about. Finally she simply asked, "How did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"The _arai_. I know you were the one that killed the rest of them. I couldn't because I was paralyzed, Silena was blind, and Derek was being viciously attacked by an _arai_. So how did you do it?"

"Why am I getting the feeling you already know?"

"Because I want to hear it contradicted. If you did what I think you did… that's a dark path to go down Luke."

"I couldn't think of anything else, Bryn," Luke said, cringing. "You were about to die, Silena was about to wander off to a place I wouldn't have been able to see her, Derek was being mauled by an _arai_… I couldn't think of anything and I'd rather risk going down a dark path if it meant saving your lives than staying on the good path and letting you die. I already got you killed once and damn it, I'm not doing it again."

"And I would rather die knowing that you're safe and good and staying on the right path. Going down that dark path could turn you evil. I'm not kidding. It could turn you evil and I'd had to fight against you instead of with you and I couldn't do that. I'd be ordered to kill you and I couldn't-" Bryn was unable to finish her sentence, choking up her words at the thought of having to kill Luke. "There are some powers that no one should have, and if they do, they shouldn't use them. So promise me you won't do it again, no matter what the circumstances are. Promise me Luke."

"If it comes to your life or Silena's or Derek's, I'm going to choose your lives over whatever happens to me. I can't promise you I won't use that power again. I can stay on the side of good and still use it. And it was only once. I don't think I'm going to go all dark side after using it once."

"One time won't turn you dark immediately if you're on the side of good, but there have been others beside you who have said the same thing. They said they'd use it to protect the ones they loved but in the end, they went dark and ended up killing the ones they loved themselves. You say you want to protect us so do that by promising me you won't use that power again."

Luke hesitated before saying, "I promise."

Relief washed through her. She gave Luke a kiss and said, "Thank you."

At that moment, the door opened. Damasen walked in with a visitor behind him, the silver titan.

"Ah, you're up," Damasen said, staring at Luke. "I am Damasen. Welcome to my home."

"Thank you for taking us in. We really appreciate it," Luke replied, giving him a smile. His attention turned to the other giant. "I remember you coming to save us, but I never got to thank you, nor did I get your name."

"I am Bob," the titan said. Pointing to the saber-tooth kitten on his shoulder, he said, "This is Small Bob."

"Thank you for saving our lives Bob and Small Bob. We owe you."

"Thank you Bob," Bryn said.

"How are you two feeling?" Damasen queried.

"I've certainly felt better but if it wasn't for you two, I wouldn't feel anything because I'd be dead," Luke answered. "Why?"

"Bob got some food for you from Shrine of Hermes. On the way, he reported monsters have your scent and are tracking you. They won't attack while you're in here because they know better than to mess with me but the minute you set foot out of here, you're fair game. You all need to get to the Doors of Death soon. I can escort you there. They're not far from here and unlike Percy and Annabeth, you do not need to face Nyx."

"If anyone attacks us, we're not alone," Derek mumbled, sitting up.

"What do you mean?" Bryn inquired.

Silena rolled over to look at her boyfriend as he explained, "I can raise armies of the dead. If any monsters attack us, my skeleton armies can hold them back."

"You're awesome," Luke said.

"Thanks. By the way, what did you do to get rid of the _arai_?"

Luke shifted uncomfortably. "I don't really remember. I kind of went into a rage."

"That's some rage. Well, until we're in dire straits of needing to leave, I'm getting some more sleep. I'm seeing double." Derek plopped back down on the bed and closed his eyes, falling asleep within seconds.

"I'm going to get some more sleep too. I need all the energy I can get before we set off again," Bryn said. Kissing Luke on the cheek, she crawled up next to Derek and closed her eyes, feeling strangely safe in the house of the giant.

* * *

When she woke up, Luke and Silena were at the table, talking. Derek was with them but he didn't look happy about being up.

"Morning, afternoon, evening, whatever time it is Catwoman," Luke greeted.

"Thanks Sharkboy," Bryn mumbled. "Are we leaving soon?"

"Yeah, in a few minutes actually. We were debating about who should wake you up since none of us wanted to be zapped."

"That was once."

"That you remember. You've zapped all of us on more than one occasion when we've tried to wake you."

"Oh… sorry," she said sheepishly. "Where's Damasen and Bob?"

"They're killing some monsters to give us some more time."

"And we did a rather good job," Damasen announced, striding into the room. "But we still need to leave soon. My oh-so wonderful father is still kicking and he'll resurrect them sooner rather than later. Grab your weapons and anything else you brought although I don't think you did. The trip will take about four or five hours."

Bryn hopped down to the ground and elongated her sword _Kera__v__nó_. Luke gave her a kiss on the head in greeting. Her stomach had butterflies at the contact and she wondered if she'd ever get used to the feeling. He took her hand in his and announced they were ready. Silena and Derek seconded it. Damasen and Bob nodded, grabbing their own weapons, before setting off to the Doors of Death. This all seemed too easy to Bryn but not wanting to ruin the mood, she stayed silent. Now if only her thoughts stayed silent too…

* * *

**Derek**

Besides the thought that any moment could bring his death in the next few hours, the only other thing he could think of was comparing the current situation to the Lord of the Rings and how he very much felt like a Hobbit following Gandalf.

The four demigods stayed quiet for the most part, only speaking if checking up on one another if they stumbled. They were all too alert and anxious being down here. Even though they'd probably only been walking for an hour, if felt like days. For all he knew, an hour down here could be a day up on earth. What if an hour down here was a year up there? What if that was true and they'd been down here for seventy-two hours which meant that his parents, Percy, and Annabeth were all dead and Hallie, Bradley, and Brady were all in the late eighties or early nineties?

_Snap out of it_. Derek thought to himself.

"Stop, just down there. Those are the Doors of Death," Damasen said, pointing to massive, ornate, black and silver doors.

"So do we just waltz on down there or do we need to call Thanatos or something?" Luke questioned.

"We walk down there, but carefully. Something or someone can pop up at any moment."

"Someone's already down there," Derek said.

"What do you mean?" Silena asked.

"Tartarus. He's down there. He's waiting for us."

"Can we like… I don't know, go around?" Luke said.

"Oh yeah, let's just go around. That's a great idea. It's not like Tartarus won't see us. It's not like we're in Tartarus," Derek replied sarcastically.

"Okay, I get it. Bad idea. Sheesh."

"I've tried flying down here. The air won't let me," Bryn said dejectedly.

Derek grimaced. "Then there's only one way to go, and that's down."

* * *

**Uh oh. Hope they are going to be okay (probably not to be honest). And considering this story is actually quite close to being done (I know it's shocking!), you might just get another chapter after this. Review please :)**


	35. We Fight Tartarus

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**You are not going to die while I owe you a favor."**

* * *

Chapter 35: We Fight Tartarus

The six of them traipsed down the hill towards the Doors of Death. Only when they were on level ground did Tartarus decide to show himself. He towered over all them, including Damasen. Derek had felt like a Hobbit next to Damasen, but he felt like an ant next to Tartarus.

"Ah, the four of you finally decided to show up," Tartarus boomed.

"Got held up along the way by some of your minions. Sorry to keep you waiting," Luke responded.

"Yes, unfortunately you're all more competent than I thought. I also do not appreciate you sending my daughter down here."

"She tried to kill us. Didn't really have a choice," Silena said.

"There's always a choice. And I am making the choice to fight you four."

"Yes, four angry demigods versus one cocky primordial being. I see no way in how this can go badly for you," Luke remarked.

Tartarus grinned maliciously. "Oh you'll be fighting me one on one."

Tartarus shifted into four different people and suddenly the last two lines of the prophecy made sense. Luke, Bryn, Silena, and Derek each had to defeat a Tartarus to get back home. It was the ultimate test of trust and faith, something each of them had lacked in someone in the group at some point.

"Tartarus, before we begin your destruction, can you give me five seconds to do something?" Luke said. The primordial beings stared at him which he must've taken as a yes because Luke took Bryn's face in his hands and crashed his lips to hers. The kiss lasted so long that Derek, Silena, Bob, and even Damasen looked away in embarrassment.

When it finally broke off, Bryn appeared flabbergasted and unable to speak. She did manage to stammer out, "Wh-what was that for?"

Luke whispered something into her ear to which she replied, "You're not dying on me while I owe you a favor."

"Enough! Prepare yourselves!" Tartarus roared.

_Bob and I will convince Thanatos to let you in the elevator. You must hurry in destroying Tartarus though. Be careful, he does not just play physical games but mental games as well._ Damasen's voice echoed through Derek's head. Judging by the looks on the others' faces, they'd heard his voice too. Tartarus separated the demigods away from each other. Derek, naturally, had the scariest looking one. He was tall and seemed to be an endless void of darkness. At least the others were fighting a Tartarus that had a face.

"Dude you're fugly," Derek blurted before he could stop himself.

"Derek Lee Michaels, son of Hades and grandson of Apollo. I've heard of your great powers but I expected… more. I expected someone stronger like Luke, or maybe smarter like Silena, or more cunning like Bryn, but you, even with your powers, you're still the weakest of the bunch aren't you," Tartarus taunted.

Derek clenched his teeth. "If I'm as weak as you say, then how am I still here?"

"Your friends have a knack for saving you. Weren't you getting mauled by one of my precious _arai_ before Luke destroyed them?" Tartarus swung his sword at Derek who tried to block it, but the force of their swords clashing sent the demigod flying back. He struggled to get up as Tartarus closed in on him. "What use are your powers when you couldn't save your dear best friend? You discovered your powers too late to save your precious Bryn and with what I have in store for her, she won't be making it out of this alive."

"Bryn could destroy all four of you single-handedly," Derek spat. "She doesn't need any of us to kick ass which she proved very well with what she orchestrated to defeat your daughter."

"My daughter was a fool for trusting that blasted daughter of Zeus. She should've known better. But even when Bryn was not with you, she was not alone. Luke has never been alone, neither has Silena. Only you. Only you have felt alone, as if you had no one. And do you want to know something Derek Michaels?"

"I figure I'm going to get an answer whether I say yes or no," he retorted.

Even faceless, Derek knew Tartarus was smiling. "It's because you are right. You have no one Derek Michaels. Your friends are friends with you because they pity you. You're weak, useless, and pathetic."

At that, Derek actually laughed. "Whether that's true or not, you're wrong about a few things. First I'm not weak, and second, I'm not useless, and third, I'm never alone."

All of a sudden, skeletons burst from the ground, hundreds of them. While Tartarus was occupied kicking the skeletons away, Derek lit himself on fire, but he made the flames form the shape of a man the same size as Tartarus. Derek, in the face of death, had never felt so alive.

"What are you doing?!" Tartarus demanded.

"I'm showing you just how pathetic I am," Derek growled.

* * *

**Luke**

It was unnerving fighting a being that looked like your grandfather, straight from the black hair to the Hawaiian shirt to the Bermuda shorts to the flip flops. At least he didn't have a trident. And at least he had a face unlike Derek's Tartarus but Derek caught himself on fire and was repeatedly punching Tartarus in his nonexistent face so Derek seemed to be handling things smashingly.

"Luke Charles Jackson, grandson of Poseidon," Tartarus said.

"And Athena. Don't forget Athena," Luke said.

"That puny goddess?"

"Hey, don't call my grandma puny! She could whoop your butt faster than I'm going to!" Luke charged Tartarus, vaulting over him and slashing at his shoulder. Tartarus saw it coming and dodged out of the way.

"Is that all you can do? I expected a grandson of Poseidon to be more impressive," the immortal mused distastefully. "Besides, to defeat me, you'll have to go against a promise you made to someone you love. Now what are you going to do little one? Will you die for your friends which will prevent them from getting home? Or will you break the promise and trust of the girl you love? Choose _wisely_ grandson of Poseidon."

Luke paled. He doubted Tartarus was going to give him long to figure this out. He had promised Bryn not to use his powers on peoples' blood and if he broke that, not only would she never trust him again, but the gods didn't look kindly upon broken promises. But then if Luke didn't use the power, Tartarus would kill him.

Before he could think of a solution, Tartarus swung his sword at Luke who rolled out of the way, leaping back onto his feet. Where was some water when he needed it? But that's when it hit him. Not Tartarus's sword thank god, but the answer. Each demigod was fighting their biggest weakness: Derek was fighting a nobody, Silena was fighting the equivalent of Athena, Bryn was fighting someone that looked almost exactly like herself, and Luke was fighting the equivalent of Poseidon. But the Poseidon heritage wasn't Luke's weakest heritage. That was always the one that came most naturally to him. It was his Athena heritage that was the hardest for him to use.

_Silena! Switch places! We're fighting the wrong ones!_ Luke mentally told his sister.

_What in Hades' name do you mean?_ She responded.

_I mean we're supposed to fight our weakest point. I'm fighting the Poseidon equivalent when I should be fighting the Athena equivalent and it's vice versa for you!_

_You better be right about this!_

_I am! Trust me! Now switch and remember our conversation from earlier to help you! Be careful!_ The two demigods left their Tartarus and switched places, much to the annoyance of the Tartaruses.

"I see you figured out my little test," Tartarus snarled at Luke.

"Just because my Athena heritage is the hardest for me to use doesn't mean I can't. Now are we going to talk or we going to fight?"

* * *

**Silena**

When Luke had first told her to switch, Silena had thought her brother had gone mental. It had made sense to her to fight against the Tartarus equivalent of Athena because that was her strongest heritage. She had no problem using her Poseidon powers but she was, admittedly, much wiser than her brother. But now that she was fighting the Tartarus equivalent of Poseidon, it made sense to her, especially after her conversation with Luke earlier.

"Silena Bianca Jackson, come to die because she believed her brother," Tartarus said. "How stupid."

"No, my brother's right. We're fighting against our weakest points. And it's not just my Poseidon heritage that's my weak point, but my choice to choose the wisest path. Well that's changing, right here, right now, and you get to witness that."

Then, Silena charged at Tartarus, sword lifted above her head. The immortal laughed as he jabbed his sword at her. She deflected it with her own and kept charging. He tried again and again but could not stop Silena's run until he finally slammed his sword into the ground, causing a blast wave that sent her twenty feet back.

"Rude!" She shouted. "You're not scared of a little sword fighting are you?"

Tartarus growled and tried to stomp on her. She jumped away. Silena risked a glance back to see how far along her brother was in defeating his Tartarus. He was jumping around like a little ninja and was nicking Tartarus more than he was getting nicked himself but she could tell he was tiring. Silena had to keep stalling. Unless she could handle the stunt on her own…

It was an unwise decision but that was the whole point of this wasn't it?

"Yes, little one, think. Think," Tartarus chanted.

_Don't think! Silena don't you dare think! _Luke chided. _Be like me! Think like me! Which means don't think at all!_

Silena snarled at her Tartarus and said, "Never bet against a child of Athena."

Silena thought about the blood coursing through Tartarus's veins, imagining how fast it was going. It needed to go faster. Much faster. Silena used her anger and frustration to accomplish what she needed to be done. At first she had no idea if it was working or not, but when Tartarus grabbed his throat, she knew it was.

"Stop this!" Tartarus ordered.

"No," Silena replied shortly.

"But you can't use this power against me! You promised!"

"Bryn made Luke promise her never to use this power, not _me_." Silena walked up to him, swinging her sword. "You underestimated not just me, but my abilities, and I'm going to make sure your last thought is that you never, ever bet against a granddaughter of Athena and Poseidon."

* * *

**Bryn**

At first Tartarus appeared as Luke.

Then Derek.

Then Silena.

Then her brothers.

Then Hallie.

Then her mother.

None of these bothered her. She knew it was all fake. It was only when Tartarus shifted into herself that Bryn became frozen in fear. Bryn knew that the Bryn she was looking at wasn't what she looked like right now. Tartarus Bryn wore a business dress, blood-red lipstick, and had her hair pulled back into a bun. It was an outfit real Bryn had worn to see Hannah once.

"Bryn Elizabeth Winchester, you have a lot of demons inside you, but you are your biggest demon. So fight me, and let the best Bryn win," Tartarus said with a grin. It was weird seeing herself like this. Not many people got the chance to see what they looked like other than from photos and mirrors. Only identical twins saw themselves in person. It was nerve-wracking. But Bryn also realized that Tartarus Bryn made no move to attack her. She stood as still as Bryn did, in the same exact position.

What was going on here?

So her biggest demon was herself?

How was Tartarus going to incorporate that besides looking like her?

Bryn took a step forward. So did Tartarus Bryn. Taking a deep breath, she launched her attack. Her sword clashed with her enemy's in midair. Angrily she kicked out at her opponent's stomach only to be met with a kick to hers. Both of them stumbled backwards. That was weird. How had Tartarus Bryn known real Bryn was going to do that?

"Hey Bryn!" Luke shouted.

"Yeah?" she yelled back, pushing herself up and keeping a careful eye on her opponent.

"Do you like Italian?"

"What?!" she couldn't help but look in his direction.

"I was thinking-" Luke rolled over towards Bryn and away from his Tartarus's sword. "-for our first date when we get back to earth, how about Italian?"

"Luke Jackson, we are in the middle of a battle! How can you be thinking about our first date right now?" Bryn demanded.

"I'm multitasking!" he answered, running back towards his Tartarus.

Rolling her eyes, she turned her attention back to her Tartarus who had strangely remained in the position Bryn had last seen her (him?) in. What was going on?

If Bryn herself was her biggest demon, then that's why Tartarus appeared as her. But that didn't mean Tartarus had her powers. Grinning to herself, Bryn sent a massive lightning bolt towards Tartarus. She regretted the decision instantly when a lightning bolt hit her too. She somersaulted in the air before coming to a halt against a rock. Someone yelled out her name but Bryn wasn't sure who. Her head was pounding but all she could think about was how her Tartarus could attack her at any moment. Bryn had to get back up. She had to keep fighting. Her friends' lives were at stake.

But for once in her life, Bryn couldn't think of a way to defeat her enemy. For once in her life, she couldn't figure out how she was going to escape death this time. The second she thought that, Tartarus Bryn smiled at her, and a cold feeling settled in real Bryn's stomach as the answer came to her.

* * *

**Dun dun dun. Reviews would be lovely :)**


	36. I Tried

**Did you like the last cliffhanger? No? Well it all gets resolved this chapter :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**Losing him was like hearing every goodbye ever said to me all at once."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 36: I Tried

**Luke**

Derek finished off his Tartarus with fire and skeletons. Silena defeated hers with her kamikaze-like attacks. Luke finished his by pretending to be unable to get up and when Tartarus tried to impale him to the ground, rolled away at the last second and Luke ran Tartarus through with his sword. They all made it to the elevator where Thanatos was waiting, watching.

Bryn was still fighting though. Her opponent fought and moved almost exactly like her. Luke was terrified for his girlfriend but he had faith in her that she'd live through this. She always had and she'd do it again. Sure enough, Bryn stabbed Tartarus through the stomach, twisted her sword, and pulled it out just before her Tartarus disintegrated. She staggered to the side a bit which worried Luke. Had she been injured?

But Bryn shook it off and ran as fast as she could to the elevator. She was stopped by Thanatos who seemed to have a few questions for her. They had a silent conversation. Luke was trying to read Bryn's emotions but he couldn't. They were too ambiguous.

"Bryn, hurry!" Derek shouted. Luke ran out of the elevator to help Bryn along because she seemed to be having trouble. Luke remembered Damasen's warning about how Tartarus didn't just play physical games but he played mental games as well. Who knew what that jerk of an immortal did to his girlfriend.

"Luke I'm okay, I'm okay. Get Damasen and Bob in here. They need to come up too."

"I shall stay down here. In case anymore demigods come this way, they will need a friend to guide them to safety. Thank you, and say hello to your parents for me," Damasen said. "Safe travels."

The giant waved. Luke turned to Bob. "Do you want to come?"

Bob contemplated the idea, seeming conflicted about what to do. "Bob wants to help Damasen… but Bob want to say hello to the stars."

"We can have Hades send you back Bob. The gods are going to owe us for saving their world. We can get you back here after you've seen the stars," Silena offered.

Bob turned around to Damasen. "You be okay while I'm gone?"

"Go friend. I will see you again."

Smiling, Bob stepped into the elevator with the demigods. Thanatos shut the door but not before reminding the demigods that they had to make sure the doors stayed shut or bad things would happen. They waved at Damasen until they couldn't see him anymore. Once the doors shut, the demigods made sure they stayed shut by pushing their bodies into the doors and shoving them to the center. Bob simply used his giant hands.

"Okay, we have twelve minutes before we get up top. We can do this… we're almost there," Bryn said.

"Bryn, who were you fighting? It looked just like you," Luke asked.

"Me. I'm my own worst enemy."

Luke studied her. Her appearance was worrying him. Bryn's face was pale and gaunt. Her hair was covered in dirt, grime, and blood. Her whole body was trembling. She was still beautiful to him, she always was, but she looked terrible. He looked over at Silena and Derek. Their appearance was extremely similar to Bryn's so Luke could only imagine what he looked like.

"Guys, keep talking," Bryn said. "It'll help pass the time and it'll prevent me from falling asleep because I really want to."

"I don't know what to say. I mean we just went through and defeated Tartarus. I'm kind of speechless," Silena replied.

"You can't be speechless because you just said something," Luke countered, trying to give her an impish smile. She glared at him.

"Silena, promise me you'll never do what your brother tells you to do again, especially if it means using a certain power," Bryn ordered. "Never use that again."

"I promise," Silena said.

"I can't wait to be up top again," Derek mused. "I can't wait to be in the sun in air that won't blister your skin just from being in it."

"I can't wait to take some ambrosia and nectar, get all these wounds healed up," Silena added.

"I can't wait to take a bath," Luke said. "I smell like death."

"Something smells like death, that's for sure," Derek commented.

"Wonder what's going to kill me first: a monster or this elevator music. It's terrible," Bryn remarked as Mr. Roboto played on repeat.

"How about you just don't die? You seem to have a good habit of avoiding death," Luke said.

"We all run out of luck at some point," she replied.

"All right Miss Sunshine, I'm going to need you to roll back the pessimism."

Bryn smiled. "None of you were supposed to go down there with me… but I'm glad I didn't have to endure that alone. Thank you."

"We've got your back Bryn. Always," Derek promised.

"Guys, do you feel that?" Silena asked excitedly.

"Feel what?" Luke answered confusedly.

"The elevator, it stopped!"

"Get away from the doors!" Derek said. The demigods backed away from the door. Bryn grabbed onto Luke for support. He wrapped his arm around her. When the doors opened, they were blinded by the sunlight but they still managed to stumble outside.

"Guys over here!" a girl shouted. Luke blinked his eyes, trying to see who it was. A girl with brown hair and soft brown eyes loomed over him.

Hallie.

"You're back! And alive! I'm so happy to see you!" Hallie threw her arms around Bryn but pulled away almost instantly.

"Bryn are you okay?" Hallie inquired. The two shared a silent conversation before Hallie barked at the twins to get Bryn and Luke up to the ship immediately. Brady and Bradley listened to the daughter of Hades but gave her strange looks, as if they wanted to know the urgency. The danger was over wasn't it?

The twins flew Bryn and Luke up to the top deck of a flying ship. It didn't really surprise Luke to see a flying ship. He had just fought Tartarus so this was beyond tame to him.

"Bryn," he croaked out, giving a small laugh. "We made it."

She didn't respond. He looked over Bryn's way to find her on all fours, one hand clutching her stomach. "Bryn?"

She looked up at him. Tears were falling down her face. "Luke- I'm s-so sor… sorry."

"What do you mean?" He demanded, scrambling over to her as fast as he could. He pulled her hand away from her stomach to find it covered in blood. Now that her hand wasn't covering the wound, blood poured freely onto the deck of the ship. "No, no, no!"

Bryn started silently crying as Luke cradled her in his arms.

"Bryn!" Silena screamed. Suddenly his sister was opposite him. Derek was with her but he seemed unable to speak.

"No!" the twins shouted. Bradley, Brady and Hallie surrounded Luke and Bryn.

"I-I tried to st…stay a-alive. I did," Bryn whispered. "But the curse… it wasn't bro-broken when… we fell…into Ta-Tartarus. Someone had… to die."

"But I had the ring, I was supposed to die," Luke said, cupping her face.

"You had the ring."

"What do you mean I had the- you took it. You took it back from me."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry Luke." Bryn's voice was getting softer and softer but tears were stills streaming down her face. "I kn-know you… you're mad but… it was m-my cu-curse to bear. Not y-yours."

"Hey, hey, I'm not mad at you. But you have to hang on okay? We'll get you some ambrosia and nectar and you'll be okay." He placed a kiss to her brow. "Just hang on."

Bryn shook her head. "No. Ambrosia and… and nectar c-can't help m-me now."

"Luke… she's-" Silena began.

"I love you. I love all of y-you and tell… tell my parents I'm… sorry I didn't get… to see them," Bryn said so softly Luke barely heard her. "Tell them… I love them."

"We will. We love you too Bryn. You're not going to die alone this time," Luke promised, his voice cracking.

She smiled. "I love you."

And those were Bryn Winchester's final words.

* * *

**Hard chapter to write but the story's not over yet so I hope you enjoy and keep reading to find out EVERYTHING that happens. Reviews would also be lovely :)**


	37. Hello Stars

**I do apologize for the terrible ending I left you with last chapter! But in the wise words of Ed Sheeran, "Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, then it's not the end."**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**And if the moon and the stars could speak to you, my love, they'd narrate how much my heart aches for your gentle touch and how my soul misses its other half."  
****~Unknown**

* * *

Chapter 37: Hello Stars

**Hallie**

When Bryn's hand fell limply to the ground, signaling she had truly passed away, Luke let out a sound Hallie never wanted to hear again. It was so full of anguish and hurt and despair…

He had his forehead braced against Bryn's, whispering to her to come back. But Hallie had seen Bryn's life aura fade to nothingness, and she knew Derek had too. Bryn had been Hallie's first true friend. To lose the daughter of Zeus made the daughter of Hades feel like she'd lost a part of herself. She wanted to cry. She wanted to cry so badly but the shock of it all prevented her from doing so.

"Brady, where is it?!" Bradley suddenly exclaimed through his tears.

Brady blinked. "Where is what?"

"The cure!"

"My room!"

It suddenly made sense to Hallie what they were talking about. She'd been so wrapped up and distraught about Bryn that she hadn't remembered they had the one chance to save Bryn, even from death. Brady scrambled up and went down into the ship.

"What did you three do?" Will Solace asked, sounding rather suspicious.

"You're going to do to her what I did to myself," Leo said. "Aren't you?"

"What are they talking about?" Silena demanded through her tears. Derek and Luke were still focused completely on Bryn so they were oblivious to the conversation. Hallie began wondering if Luke would even relinquish his tight hold on Bryn even if it was to try and save her life. He wasn't exactly in his right mind.

"When the twins and I found out about Bryn's curse, she requested we not search for a cure or a way out for her. But without her knowledge, we went on our own quests in search of one. We finally came across some information that while it was in all honesty a probably futile attempt, we were desperate. Turns out it wasn't futile, although it wasn't easy to get," Hallie explained.

"What is it though?"

"The Physician's Cure."

Silena's mouth fell open. "As in… bring you back from death cure?"

Hallie nodded. At that moment, Bradley and Brady came bounding up the stairs, waving a syringe in the air and yelling, "We got it! We got it!"

"Easy, don't drop it! It's a glass syringe you know," Hallie chastised. Kneeling down next to Bryn, she took her friend's arm in her hand. Bradley sat down next to her and brought the syringe up to his sister's arm. Luke jerked Bryn away from them.

"What are you doing?!" He hissed with such fury that everyone took a step away from him.

"Luke," Silena said hesitantly. "What Bradley's holding is called the Physician's Cure. It has the power to bring someone back from the dead."

He blinked, as if realizing how strong his reaction had been. "Oh. And you know it will work?"

"I can assure it does," Leo promised. "I've used it before."

Luke hesitated before saying, "Okay, you can do it."

Bradley injected the fluid into Bryn's arm. Hallie didn't know what to expect. Maybe some sign that the cure was working, but the whole thing was very uneventful. They waited with bated breath for Bryn to wake up. But when she remained deathly still, Hallie lost hope, especially when Luke put his ear above her heart and reported in a depressed tone that he heard nothing.

"I-I thought it'd work," Brady whispered.

Silena placed her hand on his shoulder. In a voice that cracked near the end, she said, "Thank you for trying."

"We should place her somewhere comfortable until she can be buried properly," Will remarked gently.

"We can put her in my room," Hallie offered. "I can stay with Bradley."

Luke carefully stood up, refusing anyone who tried to help him carry her. Hallie went with him just so she could lead him to where her room was. He gingerly placed Bryn on Hallie's bed; her head lolled to the right towards the wall. Luke pulled up a chair next to the bed and collapsed into it, staring despondently at his dead girlfriend.

"Are you going to be okay?" Hallie asked softly.

"I don't know," he admitted. "Last time she died, I had something to distract me from her death. I had someone to kill to pay for it. If I got vengeance on Hannah, then I could've lived with Bryn's death. But she was killed by Tartarus, someone I can't kill because she killed him. I know… I know she wants me to move on and find a girlfriend but I can't get those dreams out of my head of the two of us together."

"What dreams?" Hallie inquired, sitting on the edge of the bed so she could face Luke.

"In Tartarus, Silena, Derek, and Bryn all had nightmares when they fell asleep. I did too, but I had one happy dream. I remember it was a very calm dream of us walking on the beach, holding hands, talking, kissing, and just… being normal. I thought I was seeing the future. I thought maybe Apollo or Aphrodite was getting into my dreams when I was all the way down in Tartarus to tell me that we were all going to survive the ordeal, that everything was going to be okay. But it's not. Nothing's okay right now." Luke buried his hands in his face. His shoulders shook as he broke down crying again.

Hallie realized Luke needed alone time so she got up and went back up to the top of the ship. The twins, Derek, and Silena were sitting in a circle. They were still crying but seemed to be talking, probably good stories about their time with Bryn. Nico, Will, Leo, and Calypso were at the steering wheel of the ship, talking in hushed voices. Bob the Titan was alone, staring up at the night sky. Hallie went over to him.

"Are you okay Bob?" she queried.

The Titan sighed. "I like the stars. The stars are very beautiful. Hello stars."

Hallie smiled. "The stars twinkling are them saying hello back to you."

"Are you okay?"

"I will be. You take care of yourself okay Bob?"

* * *

**Bryn**

There was nothing but blackness and weightlessness. Was this death? Wasn't she supposed to go to the Underworld? Where was she? For a brief, terrifying moment, Bryn thought she was falling back down to Tartarus, but then told herself that wasn't possible. Her fate of her place in the Underworld would be decided by the judges. But where were they?

_I'm dead. I should be in the Underworld but I'm not. What is this place?_

The blackness shifted to Camp Half-Blood. She saw her parents, Annabeth, Percy, and Mr. and Mrs. Michaels talking on a computer to Silena. Luke, Derek, the twins, and Hallie stood in the background. They all looked like hell, but Luke looked worst of all. His eyes were puffy, his face splotchy red, as if he'd been crying for days. Her parents were tearing up, as were Percy and Annabeth, but she could tell the latter four were still happy their kids were alive.

"Drew, Penn, one of the last things Bryn said was that she loved you, and that she's sorry she didn't get to see you," Silena said.

Bryn's mom let out a sob. "She has nothing to be sorry for."

The scene then shifted to a tour of a ship. It started in the twins' room. Hallie was with them. The atmosphere was gloomy but they were talking quietly. Bryn caught her name mentioned a few times but otherwise was unable to hear anything. It then went to Derek and Silena who were hugging each other, tears falling down their faces.

Then she was with some familiar faces, and unfamiliar. She recognized Nico and Will Di Angelo. She didn't recognize the two people with them but their conversation could be heard clearly.

"How are the kids doing?" the strange man asked.

"Oh, hey Leo," Will greeted solemnly. "They're… doing okay. They miss her terribly. Luke's a wreck though. He's in her room again. I heard him talking to her. If I didn't think it was helping him to do that, I'd want him out of her room."

"If I knew how to be a mother, I'd try to help them but I'm not exactly a mothering type," the girl admitted.

Leo threw his arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry Calypso, the mother life isn't the life for everyone. Besides, you have your entire life to figure out how to be a mother. You'll figure it out sooner or later."

_Calypso… as in the Titan? _Bryn thought.

"There's something weird going on though. I can't shake this vibe that something's happening," Nico said.

"What is it Ghost King?" Leo asked.

"If I knew I'd tell you, Repair Boy. I'm an intuitionist, not a psychic. That'd be Derek."

"I'm going to go bring food to the kids. Maybe Luke will eat something this time," Will announced.

"The boy needs to eat or he'll starve himself," Calypso said.

"You can't force him to eat. If he doesn't want to, he won't," Nico remarked.

Then the dream shifted again and Bryn found herself lying on a bed, facing a wall. Now where was she? She turned her head to the left to find nothing but a chair next to the bed. Strange she thought.

Bryn tried to sit up but the movement was too exhausting. Her blood felt like lava, and she was sweating like crazy. So she decided to wait a while and try and move her limbs. It took a while but Bryn was finally able to at last sit up. She then had to deal with the room spinning. Once it settled down, she carefully walked to the bathroom. Wherever she was, she needed a bath. Bryn could smell her own stench and it was not pleasant. After grabbing some clothes that seemed to have magically been her own size, it dawned on Bryn that she must be in Elysium. Everything in this place was too clean, too light, the clothes were her own size, and she could think her own thoughts. It was the only logical reason. If she'd been in the Fields of Asphodel, she would've been a mindless, wandering soul. If she was in the Fields of Punishment, she'd be doing some form of… well, punishment. Here, she felt safe and secure. Elysium was the only thing that made sense. She decided after her shower, she would go explore her Elysium. Maybe, just maybe, she'd find some people she knew to help her figure out how to cope with the loss of being with her loved ones. She knew she was going to need it as her heart already ached for Luke, Derek, Silena, her brothers, Hallie, her parents, the Michaels, the Jacksons, and everyone at camp itself. That had been her home. She wanted to be home.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! :)**


	38. We're Going Home

**Enjoy :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**I can't tell you just how wonderful she is. I don't want you to know. I don't want any one to know."  
**_**~This Side of Paradise**_**, F. Scott Fitzgerald**

* * *

Chapter 38: We're Going Home

**Luke**

"I can't believe my big brother is married!" Silena exclaimed. "You two are going to be so happy together!"

"You'll be married soon though," Hallie chimed in. "Yours and Derek's wedding is in two months."

"I know, it's so surreal but I can't wait! And then yours and Bradley's, have you decided a date yet?"

"No, we're still figuring it out." Hallie turned to Luke. Scrunching her eyebrows, she asked, "Are you okay? You looked dazed."

"Yeah," he replied with a smile. "Just taking this all in. I never thought I'd marry the girl of my dreams."

He felt someone wrap their arms around his shoulders. "You weren't getting rid of me that easily Sharkboy."

He twisted around in his chair to kiss Bryn, his new wife. "I'm glad. Come here."

Luke pulled Bryn into his lap. She laughed. They'd officially been together for six years and they couldn't be happier. They'd certainly had their fights and their disagreements, but nothing could come between them.

"With the way these two are acting, we're going to have little Lukyn's running around sooner rather than later," Brady remarked, walking up to the table. Bryn and Luke hastily pulled out of their kiss.

"Then you'll be an uncle," Luke said.

"I'd be the better uncle."

"You would not," Bradley argued. "I'm obviously the more fun one."

"You're definitely the blonder one."

"At least I'm not the dumber one."

"I'm not dumber!"

"Yes you are."

"Boys, please don't argue on my wedding day," Bryn said, raising her eyebrows at them. They shut up but glared at each other.

"There's the newlyweds," Percy Jackson announced, walking up to the group with Annabeth on his arm. He smiled at them. "I'm so proud right now."

"Hey dad," Luke said with a grin.

"Here, we wanted to give you a gift," Annabeth said, handing them a beautifully wrapped gift. Luke let Bryn have the honor of unwrapping it. He smiled when he saw it was pictures of him and Bryn throughout their years, from their first photo together to their engagement photo. "It's to remind you of everything you've been through so that whenever your marriage hits a rough patch, which it undoubtedly will as every marriage does, you will remember that you can get through it."

"I mean, you survived Tartarus together so if you two could survive that, you'll survive anything, but still, just a reminder," Percy added. Luke and Bryn hugged the Jacksons but something was nagging Luke in the back of his mind. At first he couldn't figure it out. It wasn't until Bryn mentioned their time in Tartarus that it hit him.

"How did you survive that? You died," Luke stated, staring at her.

Bryn cocked her head. "What do you mean how did I survive? You were there. How can you not remember?"

He blinked, the slow realization coming over him. "This isn't real. This is a dream."

"You like what you see, Mr. Jackson?" a voice queried. He turned around to see who it was. A woman with blonde hair and blue eyes approached him. She was beyond beautiful but she still had nothing on Bryn.

"Grandma!" Bryn exclaimed, hugging her.

"Hello dear," Aphrodite said.

"This is a dream," Luke repeated. Bryn looped her arm through his and rested her chin on his shoulder. Having her rub her hand up and down his arm didn't help his concentration on Aphrodite because if this really was a dream, he didn't want to wake up from it.

The goddess simply looked at him and laughed.

* * *

Luke woke up with a start. He looked down at his arm because he thought he felt someone still rubbing it, but it was only an illusion, only wishful thinking that Bryn was still there. He fell back down onto his pillow, rubbing his head until he got a strange sensation that something had happened. The sensation wasn't alerting him to danger, it just alerted him that he needed to check something out.

Luke rolled out of bed and headed to the top deck. The rest of the demigods were up there, making small talk. Silena was the first to see him. She gave him a small smile.

"Hey, how are you doing?" she inquired.

"Aphrodite's screwing with me," he muttered. When his sister gave him a questioning look, he said he'd explain it later. "I just got a weird feeling. I thought I'd come up here to check on everyone, make sure everyone's all right."

"I think it's an effect from being in Tartarus. I've been getting a weird feeling ever since we left that awful place," Derek said. Luke nodded, excused himself from the conversation, and headed back downstairs. He simply wasn't in the mood to be around people. But he wanted, needed, to tell someone about his dream, so he went to Bryn's room. He felt weird talking to her when she was dead, but he couldn't bring himself to talk about to anyone else but her.

Luke opened her door and closed it so no one could eavesdrop on his conversation with her. Although there was nothing he had to hide, he still felt this was a private conversation. But when Luke turned around and saw Bryn in her bed, he froze. She'd completely changed positions. Instead of laying on her back on top of the sheets, she was on her side underneath the covers. He started moving back towards the door because he thought he was going insane and needed to tell the others about Bryn's new position when she opened her eyes. They immediately fell onto Luke. Bryn pushed herself up into sitting position, appearing just as dumbfounded as Luke. She carefully got out of bed. He could see her hands shaking. Slowly Bryn approached him. He let her.

"You died?" Bryn asked sadly, gently cupping his face with one of her hands.

He covered her hand with his. Feeling the warmth in her hand began confirming that Bryn was really alive. She was really back. "I didn't die. You came back."

"H-how?"

"The Physician's Cure. Your brothers and Hallie got it because they knew…" Luke couldn't finish his sentence. The pain of losing her, even with Bryn standing right in front of him, was still too fresh in his mind.

"They knew I was going to die," Bryn finished his sentence for him. "Does that mean I get a second chance?"

"Yes, yes you do," Luke replied, giving a half laugh, half sob. Bryn started crying as she threw her arms around his neck. He picked her up and swung her around, burying his face in her hair.

"I thought I lost you forever," she whispered. Bryn pulled away a little but only so she could brace her forehead against his. "My first thought when I woke up was that I was in Elysium and that I'd never get to see you again."

Luke kissed her. "You were the first thing in my mind when I woke up and the last thing I thought of when I went to sleep."

The two of them just stood there, enjoying the company of one another before Luke said suddenly, "The others don't know!"

"Know what?"

"That you're alive! Wait here, I'm going to go- wait no, come with me. I fear if I leave you, you'll be gone when I get back. Come on!" Luke grabbed her by the hand and opened the door only to run into Derek, literally.

"Luke, I think Bryn might be-" Derek began but stopped when he saw his best friend. "-alive… Bryn?"

She smiled shyly. "Hi."

Derek pulled her into a hug. "You're alive. Oh my gods, you're alive. Never do that again damn it! I can't lose you a third time!"

"I promise," she said, kissing him on the cheek.

"Have you told the others?" Luke queried, taking Bryn's hand in his again just so he could keep reassuring himself she was still real and there.

"No, I was going to come check on her myself. I think this is the strange feeling I was getting earlier. Let's go tell the others!" Derek took Bryn's other hand and the three of them went to the top deck. Silena was the first to reach them. She nearly tackled Bryn in a hug. The twins were next. Bryn began crying when they hugged her as she thanked them for getting the Physician's Cure. Hallie was last but Bryn hugged her tightly.

"I swear to the gods, don't you dare die on us like that again," Hallie warned.

"You sound just like Derek," Bryn laughed through her tears. She pulled back, taking Luke's hand. "When do we get home?"

"We should be arriving tomorrow. I thought y'all might need some time before we got back to camp to mourn but that's obviously changed now," Leo said. "Bryn, you might need to get some more rest. The cure takes it out of you."

Bryn nodded. "Sleep sounds good."

"I'll wake y'all up when we're about an hour's away from camp. All of you go get some sleep. No one's going to give you a break when you get back."

The seven demigods took the advice and went below deck.

"Is anyone else actually tired? Because I'm running on an adrenaline high from finding out my sister is actually alive," Bradley commented.

"Why don't we all go to my room and chat for a bit?" Luke suggested.

"I'll grab blankets, make it like old times?" Silena said.

"I'll get some pillows," Derek added.

The group then convened in Luke's room. Bryn curled up Luke's arms, resting her head on his shoulder. He placed his head on top of hers.

"So," Bryn began. "What did you three do while we were stuck in Tartarus?"

Brady and Bradley started the story. Hallie jumped in to clarify things the boys exaggerated on even though they swore up and down that they weren't. Silena poked fun of the twins for getting into the trouble they did (Brady flew around the ship and Festus fired at him because he wasn't expecting a flying demigod; Bradley nearly blew up the ship trying to cook). Derek had a side conversation with Hallie. They seemed to still be getting to know each other but by the looks of it, they were going to get along famously. Luke simply watched and listened to the conversations around them, enjoying being around his friends, his family, his girlfriend, and for the first time in three years, feeling safe and sound.

* * *

**I can never kill my favorite characters. I couldn't kill Bryn. Well I mean could, because I did, but I couldn't keep her dead. Review please! :)**


	39. Fireworks Explode In My Mind

**Hey y'all! So I'm not sure if this is the last chapter or not but if so, fear not, there will be one more story after this :) a novella called **_**UnTouchable**_** which deals with a certain English girl and her time when she was 'dead'. Anywho, enjoy this chapter :)**

**Chapter Quote:  
**"**She knew she loved him when 'home' went from being a place to being a person."  
****~E. Leventhal**

* * *

Chapter 39: Fireworks Explode In My Mind

**Bryn**

For a few brief seconds after she woke up, Bryn thought she was in Elysium again because waking up in Luke's arms, being surrounded by her friends and family, it seemed too perfect. Never in her life had she felt so... peaceful.

"Sleeping beauty awakens," Bradley remarked.

"Now if only her prince would," Brady said.

"We've been poking him for about ten minutes."

"Waiting to see how long it'll take him to wake up."

"And when poking didn't work, we tried zapping him."

"But he just slept through that."

"You've made him immune to zapping."

"Makes me wonder if you two have slept together before and he's just used to you zapping him."

"I'd say we haven't, but I'd be lying. We have a couple times, but it was purely platonic. Although I don't think I ever zapped him while sleeping. Pretty sure he would've told me."

"He deserves to be zapped for sleeping with you when you two weren't dating," Bradley added.

"You're terrible for not zapping him," Brady said.

"You're terrible," Hallie commented, glaring at the twins as she held a cup of coffee in her hands. It must've been morning because Bryn knew her friend was not a morning person, much like herself.

"Let me try waking him up," Bryn suggested. She turned to Luke and whispered his name in his ear.

"Hi," he murmured.

"I suggest that if you don't want to be zapped anymore by my brothers, you wake up," she laughed.

Luke opened his eyes, giving the twins a deadpan stare. "I was wondering what that was."

Bradley and Brady had their eyes squinted in confusion.

"How on earth-" Bradley began.

"-did you wake up to a whisper by her-" Brady added.

"-but not to zapping-"

"-and poking?"

"I felt it, I was just ignoring it. I'm good at that. Are we almost home?" he inquired. "And where's Silena and Derek?"

"Should be home in an hour and a half. Silena and Derek are making breakfast for us. I suggest you two go get ready. Brady is going to get all our stuff packed and I'm going to escort Hallie back to her room before she kills everyone in this room. Come on love, let's get you back to bed," Bradley said, standing up and holding out his hand. Hallie took it. She and the twins left.

"I should go take a shower," Bryn murmured, closing her eyes again. She didn't want to leave but she needed another shower. Even though she'd cleaned herself extremely well after being in Tartarus and dead for a couple days, Bryn still felt she needed to wash away the essence of Tartarus on her.

Luke groaned. "I don't want to get up."

"Then don't. I'll take a shower first and then you can," she said, getting up. Luke pushed himself up. Bryn wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you Sharkboy.'

He kissed her. "I love you too Catwoman."

Bryn entered the bathroom and locked the door. She heard Luke leave the bedroom, presumably to go get food.

Bryn took a quick shower so she would have time to dry her hair and put on makeup. Luke came in about half an hour before they were supposed to arrive at camp. Bryn was doing her makeup when he entered. He placed a plate of food in front of her, kissed her cheek, and went into the bathroom.

Bryn munched happily on her breakfast, only to be interrupted five minutes later when Luke let out a yell and came crashing out of the bathroom. He'd obviously showered as his hair was wet and although he'd managed to throw some pants on, he'd forgotten his shirt. She stared at him questioningly (trying to avoid staring at his extremely toned body) to which he replied, "Spider. Big spider. How in Hades name does a spider get on a boat?!"

Being scared of spiders herself, Bryn mentally requested for Brady to come get rid of it. Her brother did as he was told but not before stopping in his tracks, narrowing his eyes, and said, "You two did shower separately, right?"

"Out!" Bryn barked, pointing towards the door. Her brother grinned as he swaggered out of the room. Bryn turned to apologize to Luke for her brother's comment.

"It's fine. By the way, like what you see?" Luke threw out his arms and shimmied a little. "I saw you staring when I came out earlier."

"I do like what I see," she said bluntly. "It's a nice view. Now hurry up and get dressed. Fully. We'll be landing in a few minutes. Hey, did you… did you tell my parents I'm alive?"

"Um, no. We haven't told anyone, actually. We probably should've done that. I don't really want to be giving our parents coronaries."

"It'll be a surprise. A good one. I hope." Luke threw on a shirt before coming up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist, and resting his head on her shoulder.

"Your mom and dad are going to be thrilled. You didn't see how they reacted when I first met them and showed them a video of you. They love you without having seen you in over fifteen years, and after they meet you again, they're going to love you even more."

Bryn took a deep breath and nodded. At that moment, Leo came over the PA system, announcing they were arriving at camp. Luke and Bryn ran up to the deck and peered over the railing. The others were already there. The glittering waters and lush forests of Long Island Sound greeted them. Kids and adults alike were gathering around, watching the flying ship come into the camp. Bryn noticed there was mix between orange and purple shirts, which meant that the Romans had stayed with the Greeks. It was nice to see them getting along.

"Welcome home," Will said, smiling at the demigods. The moment the plank was down and they disembarked, Luke, Silena, Derek, and the twins were attacked by their parents. Hallie and Bryn hung back, feeling awkward they didn't have anyone to greet them.

"Mom, dad, we want you to meet someone," Bradley said. A woman that was a spitting image of Bryn and a tall, muscular man faced Bryn. Their eyes widened.

"Mom, dad, we would like to formally introduce you to your daughter… again. Mom, dad, meet Bryn," Brady introduced.

"Bryn, meet mom and dad," Bradley added.

Bryn clasped her hands behind her back to hide how much she was shaking. Shyly, she greeted, "Hi mom. Hi dad."

Her mom started crying as she pulled Bryn into a bone crushing hug. Mr. Drew sandwiched Bryn between him and her mom.

"Oh my precious baby girl! You've grown up so much!" her mom sobbed.

"I missed you so much," Bryn whispered, feeling the tears sliding down her cheeks.

"We thought you were dead," Mr. Drew breathed. "They told us you were dead. Twice."

"I pretended to be dead the first time for a complicated reason which I'll explain. I really did die the second time," she explained. "But Bradley, Brady, and Hallie brought me back."

"How? How is that possible?"

"The Physician's Cure."

"As in the one by Asclepius?" her mom asked.

"That would be the one," Brady confirmed.

"It was hell to get but totally worth it," Bradley declared.

"We have so much catching up to do!" Mrs. Winchester said. "Go hug your friends and when you're done, we'll head to the Big House and talk, get to know each other again."

Bryn nodded, unable to speak she was so happy. She chose to hug Mr. and Mrs. Michaels next. They'd practically been her parents for a year when she was going to school. After them, she hugged Percy and Annabeth.

"I'm so glad you're alive Bryn," Annabeth whispered.

"Thank you Mrs. Jackson. And I want to talk to you and Mr. Jackson later, to apologize for everything I've done."

"There's nothing to apologize for, but I would very much like to hear your stories about what you did while you were 'dead' once you've gotten yourself reacquainted with your parents. Go sweetie. I don't want to keep you waiting." Bryn ran over back to her mom, taking her hand in hers.

"Come on mom, dad, let's go talk," Bryn said with a smile.

* * *

**Luke**

It took four days for Bryn and her parents to ask each other everything and talk about everything they wanted to. It was four days before Luke finally got more than an hour with his girlfriend. It wasn't that he minded her being with her parents, it was that he kept thinking about how many times he'd lost her and every time he couldn't see her, he'd always panic. Luke would always think that Bryn would one day not come back. Deep down he knew this wasn't true, that it was psychological damage from everything that happened in the past year, but he still couldn't rationalize it yet.

On the fifth day, Luke got Bryn all to himself for the day. The sixth day, the current day, the entire Greek and Roman camps were invited by the gods up to Olympus. Once they were there, each demigod was praised for their bravery. Luke, Bryn, Silena, Derek, Bradley, Brady, and Hallie were taken aside separately and each given one wish. Silena was offered to be the official architect of Olympus, replacing her mother. She had a lot of rebuilding to do after the fight with Hannah, but Olympus itself was still intact enough for a party to be held so that's exactly what happened.

Derek's wish was asking his father why he never claimed him. Hades' explanation was that he knew it was not the right time and that the less powerful Derek knew he was, the longer he'd be safe. Hades knew Derek's fate in the Great Prophecy, and believed it was best for him to learn his powers closer to the time of the battle than sooner. Overall, it was mostly for his protection.

Bradley and Brady's wish was to know why Zeus kept Bryn's life a secret from them. Luke heard the anger in their voices, how betrayed they felt. Zeus said that if they'd know about each other, the outcome of the world would have been very different because Bryn wouldn't have been able to make the choices she needed to. This didn't go over well with the twins but they bit their tongues, figuring arguing would be pointless.

Hallie's wish was a family. It was Derek who granted this one. He told her that he and his parents had been talking about it and they had decided to adopt her if she'd accept the offer. Hallie broke down in tears and hugged her new-found brother.

Bryn's wish was next. She requested a private conversation between the gods for hers. She ended up having a mental debate with her father, and apparently Hades as well.

"You said I could have any wish. That is my wish," Bryn declared.

"But he's been dead for over a year. For all you know, he could've gone for rebirth already," Zeus argued.

"Then if he has, so be it. But that is my wish. I expect you to at least try."

"I'll check once the meeting is over," Hades promised.

"And if he's not down there?" Zeus prodded. "What wish would you want then?"

"Nothing. I have my whole family here, blood-related or not, and that's all I could possibly want."

"Very well. We will see what we can do."

Luke's request was last. He had it prepared since the beginning. He turned towards Aphrodite and asked, "That dream you made me have a few days ago, was it true? Was that the future?"

"One of my fellow Olympians once told me that knowing your future is never a good thing, but as usual, I'm going to ignore her wise advice and say, with the exception of a few details, yes, the dream is the future. I would not think much of it though. Ask at the right time. You'll know when that is," the goddess replied. A huge grin broke out onto Luke's face as he thought of his future. It looked long and bright and most demigods, from what he'd heard, didn't get that. Luke was one of the lucky ones.

Afterwards the seven demigods went outside where campers were beginning to trickle in. The gods were hosting a victory celebration and for having survived a war only a week ago, the place looked pretty good thanks to the minor gods and goddesses that had decorated the place. Derek took Silena to the dance floor. Bradley and Hallie went to the food table. Brady dashed off to find Ana because he had something very important to ask her (meaning he was finally going to ask her out).

"Hey, come on, let's go for a walk," Bryn suggested, leading Luke towards a path that led behind Olympus. When they were out of earshot from anyone, she asked, "How are you doing? Really? Silena told me you've been anxious."

Luke rubbed the back of his head. "I guess this war took more of a toll on me than I thought it would. I'm terrified of losing any of my family when I'm not with them, especially you. It seemed every time we were apart, you got yourself killed. It's stupid, I know, because I know our biggest threat is gone but I still can't stop seeing Silena blind and wandering towards danger, Derek deaf and mauled by a demonic hag, and you paralyzed and dying in my arms… what about you? I mean you died and came back."

"I'm fine Luke. I'm alive, that's all I can ask for. I'm worried about you though. You're going through something that you can never heal from. Your mom told me that she and your dad still have nightmares about their time in Tartarus and that was almost three decades ago. You will get better about it, you'll start getting over the fear and panic it causes you, but you'll never forget it. Tartarus is something no one can forget. But you have me, Silena, Derek, your parents, my brothers, my parents, and Hallie to help you with whatever you need."

"Is it bothering you as much as it is me?"

"You mean am I getting nightmares so terrifying I wake up in a cold sweat completely paralyzed with fear? Yes."

"How are you acting so calm about it?"

"Because I tell my brothers. I tell Derek. I tell Silena. I've learned that keeping things bottled up inside is a dangerous thing to do. It took me fifteen years to actually figure it out but better late than never right?" Bryn wrapped her arms around Luke's neck. "Whenever you have a nightmare or you start feeling the effects of Tartarus, go to someone. Telling someone about what you're going through isn't a sign of weakness. It's a sign that you trust the person enough to tell them about what you're going through."

"But if it's you, Silena, or Derek, I feel like you have your own problems as a result of Tartarus and I don't want to add my problems to yours."

"You're not. We all experienced the same thing and we can help each other learn how to cope with it all. You are not alone. You will never be alone," Bryn said. "Do you understand?"

Luke smiled at her. "Yeah, I understand. Now, what about you? I know that look on your face. Something's on your mind."

"What was the dream you were talking about with Aphrodite?"

"You don't need to know the details. I'll tell you when it happens."

"Can I at least assume it's a good thing because of the smile you wore when she said it was the future?"

"Yes, and I'll tell you one more thing: it was all about you."

"I'm glad I'm in your future," Bryn said.

"Oh yeah? Might I ask why what's so great about it?"

She gave him a kiss and whispered into his ear, "Because you're most definitely in mine."

Someone cleared their throat, making the two demigods jump away from each other. Zeus and Poseidon stood there, the former looking irked, the latter trying to hide his mirth but failing miserably. Luke took Bryn's hand in his and asked, "May we help you?"

"Luke Jackson, might I have a word with you?" Zeus requested.

"You're actually asking my permission for something?" Luke blurted before he could stop himself. Poseidon snorted. Bryn bowed her head to prevent her father from seeing her laugh.

"Yes. It's about your relationship with my daughter. Since I have a feeling you're going to be around a long time, I figured we needed to have a father-boyfriend talk."

"You know I've already had one with Mr. Drew. Do we really need to-"

"Yes. I'm her biological father and just because she's seen more of Mr. Drew than she has me does not mean I do not play a part in her life. Now come. We must talk."

"That sounds more like you. I was getting worried for a moment." Luke walked off with Zeus. "So is this the part where you say if I hurt Bryn, you're going to smite me? Because I'm pretty sure if I hurt her, she's going to hurt me before you even know what's happened."

"There was that part I wanted to talk to you about but you apparently already knew it was coming so I'll move onto the second part. I wanted to thank you for saving my daughter's life. I know I haven't shown it to her but I do love her and genuinely care for her well-being. I knew of her fate. I knew she had to leave the three of you. But I also knew that if I allowed you two to date before she had to disappear, she would not have left you and I do believe we'd be in a very different position right now if we were alive at all. I know I hurt her, the twins, you, your sister, Derek, and Hallie, but I had to do what I thought was right."

"I know you were doing what you thought was right but I think you don't give Bryn enough credit. I think she would've made the right choice regardless of whether or not we were dating beforehand. And if I knew then what the outcome of all this would be, I wouldn't change it, but didn't Bryn deserve to have the happiest time of her life before she endured the darkest time of her life?"

"Who would want to leave the happiest part of their life though? That is why I didn't want you two dating."

"I know that, but look at my parents. My mom had to go on Athena's quest for the Athena Parthenos and both of my parents knew fully well that the outcome of the quest would most likely end up in my mom's death, but they knew what the right decision was and they made it. Demigods typically do that. Listen, nothing can be changed now, but in the future, maybe give Bryn more credit. Now please don't smite me."

Zeus rolled his eyes. "Gods you are so much like your grandfather and father it's astonishing. It really is. But I will consider your advice Luke Jackson, although I cannot promise I will follow it. Now get back to your girlfriend. And remember this: if you hurt Bryn and she smites you before I can, I'll raise you from the dead and kill you again."

Zeus walked off. Luke remembered his father telling him that Zeus would've made a good god of drama, and Luke had to agree. He made his way back to Bryn who was still talking to Poseidon. Unlike his serious conversation, his girlfriend's and grandfather's seemed to be jovial with a lot of bantering. Luke smiled, happy to see his girlfriend acting so carefree for once in her life. Bryn beamed when she saw him.

"Hey! I have something to show you!" she exclaimed, taking his hand in hers, shouting bye at Poseidon, and dragging Luke off towards an alcove. "Okay, I'll call the person up but after that, I'm going to leave because I think you'll want some alone time."

"What are you doing?" he queried, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his head on her shoulder as he watched her hold her hands out over the center of the gazebo they were in.

"You'll see, now shush. I need to concentrate." Bryn began mumbling some sort of spell. A few seconds later, a black portal opened up in the floor, followed by a mist floating out of it. The mist transformed itself into a solid person. Someone who was supposed to be dead. When the person gave him their familiar, mischievous grin, Luke finally said, "Tucker?"

"Hey buddy, long time no see," Tucker replied. His eyes turned to Bryn. "Hello _ma belle_."

"Hey Tuck," she replied, smiling. "I'll give you two some alone time. When you're done, come find me. I'll be at the food table."

Bryn kissed him on the cheek and left. Luke watched her go, only turning around to face his friend when he couldn't see his girlfriend anymore.

"Well are you going to talk to me or you just going to stare at me? I mean I know I'm devilishly handsome but it's starting to creep me out. And where are we by the way? This place is freaking awesome!"

"I- you- Olympus," Luke stammered out. "You're on Olympus."

"He speaks! And Olympus? As in the Greek gods' home? Come on, stop playing."

"I'm not. We're a few hundred stories above the Empire State Building. I'm surprised you actually know about the Greek gods. All I remember you doing in Greek Mythology class was flirting with the girls in there."

"Okay, it was _one_ girl and she was gorgeous, and dude, this is awesome! Totally gonna have to thank Bryn for summoning me up here."

"You knew it was her?"

"Oh yeah. It was a messaging system that alerted me it was her."

"How are you doing?" Luke asked.

"I'm fine. Kicking it with some NFL legends: Walter Payton, Reggie White… god it's amazing! Okay, answer me this, why are you on Olympus? Did you save the gods or something? Are you dating one of their kids? Are _you_ one of the kids?"

"Yes to all the above."

"_Why did you never tell me this_?!" Tucker demanded in exasperation. "Who are you related to? Who are you dating? How did you save the gods?"

"Um, I'm grandson of Poseidon and Athena, I'm dating Bryn who's the daughter of Zeus, granddaughter of Aphrodite, great-granddaughter of Hecate, and great-great-granddaughter of Apollo, and I saved the gods with Bryn, Silena, and Derek from Tartarus and Tartarus's daughter."

"My friend is a hero! Oh I can't wait to brag about this down in… wherever I am! I think I'm in that place that the good guys go. Elysia or Elium or… what's it called?"

"Elysium. And I'm no hero, Tucker."

Finally, the mirth disappeared off Tucker's face. "Luke, what happened?"

"I'm sorry, Tucker. I'm so sorry… I'm the reason you were on the road that night. I couldn't wait just one night to ask you for help and you-" Luke couldn't finish his sentence. All he could think about was the call he received from the hospital saying Tucker had been in an accident. All he could think about was him rushing over there with his parents. All he could think about was how he had no idea what had happened between seeing Tucker in the hospital bed and somehow ending up at Bryn's house.

"Luke, my death wasn't your fault. I didn't have to agree to come see you. Listen, there's a reason for everything, good or bad, and whether the reason is known or not. I mean, don't get me wrong, dying totally sucked because I didn't even get to try out for the NFL or tell you that you're an idiot for not just asking Bryn out or buy a jet pack, but hey, can't get everything you want. In the end you did ask Bryn out so can't complain there, but I'm fine now. I'm happy in Elysium and you know what, I've realized that I can always try for rebirth and try at life again. I'll be okay. So will you. You have to be. You want me to be truly okay? Then be happy Luke. Be happy."

"I will."

"Oh, and buy a jet pack in honor of me. And fly around with it."

"I don't need a jet pack to fly. I have my girlfriend for that."

"Wait, Bryn can fly?"

"Yeah. She can also shoot lighting at people, has perfect aim with a bow, can do some magic, and can Charmspeak. She's deadly."

"Remind me not to piss her off."

"Well she couldn't kill you because you're kind of already dead."

"Oh yeah… I feel like she could still hurt me if she really want to."

"She could. When there's a will, there's a way, and Bryn always has a way."

"How is she? She looked… different."

"She's good. I mean she, Derek, Silena, and I did just come back from Tartarus, Bryn died and came back quite literally, and she just met her parents again after thinking they were dead for fifteen years. I think she's exhausted but I know she's happy."

"And Silena and Derek?"

"Both good. Derek found out he's a son of Hades so he can control hell fire, armies of the dead, and he can control precious gems and metal so he made out well. Silena is herself. Still the smartest girl I know next to mom and Bryn."

"And you?"

"You asked me this."

"I want to know how you're doing _now_."

"Good. I'm with the girl I love, I have a bright future ahead of me, and I finally got to apologize to you. Psychologically, I have a lot of issues just because of everything that's happened in the past year but it's nothing I can't get past with help from my family and friends. I'll be okay Tuck."

"Good, because if not I'm going to have to convince my good friend Hades to let me up here so I can knock some sense into you," Tucker laughed. "But in all seriousness, you'll be okay? I can't leave you until I know my best friend's going to be okay."

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Sucks you won't physically be at my wedding but you'll be there in spirit."

"Already planning on marrying Bryn are you? Boy, once you fall for a girl, you fall hard."

"Thing is, I know it's going to happen. Listen, I'm not supposed to tell anyone but I don't see the harm in telling you since you're… dead."

"Thank you. I hadn't noticed."

"Aphrodite sent me a dream of me and Bryn getting married. It felt way too real in the dream and a couple hours ago, I got to ask her about it. She said it wasn't just a dream. She said it was the future."

"You mean you and Bryn really are going to-"

"Yeah. I haven't told her. I'm not going to tell her until our wedding night whenever that may be. But yeah, knowing I'm going to live long enough to have my own wedding and have it be with the Bryn, I'm definitely going to be okay."

Tucker grinned. "Make sure one of your kids is named after me."

"I promise."

"Good. Can I say bye to Bryn?"

"Yeah of course. You'll still be here if I leave right?"

"Yep."

"Then hang on. I'll be right back." Luke dashed off to find his girlfriend. When he found her, he hurriedly explained that Tucker wanted to talk to her. Together they ran back. Tucker was peering over the edge of the railing down at Manhattan.

"I was never afraid of heights until now," Tucker remarked, turning around. He smiled at Bryn. "Hello again _ma belle_."

"Hello Tucker," Bryn replied kindly. "You wanted to speak to me?"

"I wanted to thank you for bringing me up here to talk to Luke. You were right. He needed it. Second, I want to thank you for taking care of him after I died and all the times before and after that."

"I appreciate the compliment but I don't deserve it… I wasn't always there when he needed me."

"What do you mean?"

"In order for me to help destroy our enemy, I had to convince Luke, Silena, and Derek I was dead. It didn't really work because I was emotionally too connected to all of them but I hurt all of them terribly. I wasn't there when he needed me."

"Bryn Winchester, I know what you've done. Word travels surprisingly fast down in the Underworld considering it's full of dead people. Who knew that dead people like to gossip? But I heard how many times you saved Luke's life as Penn. Penn or Bryn, it doesn't matter, you saved his life. You were there for him even if it didn't seem like you were. So thank you Bryn. I'm glad you two are finally together. I would owe Derek twenty bucks on our bet about you two if I was still alive but can't do anything about that now."

"You two bet on us?" Luke asked.

"On how long it would take you two to date. I way overestimated your willpowers. I thought it'd be in the next six months. Derek said it'd take a year or longer."

Bryn bit back a grin. "Derek's a grandson of Apollo. He has the gift of prophecy. He may not have known exactly when Luke and I would end up together, but he knew a rough time period."

"That assbutt," Tucker said bluntly. "I guess I should head back down. I can feel the Underworld calling me back down. Take care of yourselves and each other. See you on the other side bro. Just make sure it's not for a while."

Then, with a wink, Tucker evaporated. A knot formed in Luke's throat. He'd miss his friend, but having the chance to talk to him, even if just for a few minutes, made all the difference in the world.

"Are you okay?" Bryn queried, rubbing her hand up and down his arm.

He looked down at her. "Yeah, I'm okay. Thank you for doing this, for letting me talk to him. You have no idea how much that meant to me."

"I thought it'd do you some good. Do you want head back to the party?"

"Would you mind if we stayed here for a bit?" Luke requested. "I mean you can go back if you want, but I kind want to stay out of the crowd for a bit."

"To be honest, I haven't had time to relax since we got back. I'll stay with you." Bryn leaned against the gazebo rails. Luke wrapped his arms around her.

"So are you ever going to tell me what that dream was you asked Aphrodite about?" She queried.

Luke laughed. "You don't give up do you?"

"No I don't. I like to know things."

"It's never a good thing to know your future. But, I can tell you one thing."

"Oh? What is it?"

"I love you."

"But I knew that," she pointed out, briefly glancing up at the fireworks going off in the sky.

"I just needed to make sure." Luke leaned down and kissed her. Bryn's hands found their way to his face, then wove themselves through his hair. Luke couldn't think straight, his mind was melting. Fireworks weren't just going off in the sky, but in his mind as well.

And it was pretty much the best kiss on Olympus of all time.

* * *

**Hope you liked the chapter! This IS the final chapter. Thank you so, so much for sticking with me through the ups and downs of this story. If it wasn't for all you amazing readers and reviewers, this story wouldn't be what it is. I do sincerely apologize for all the cliffhangers I left y'all on and the torture I put the characters through but just remember, I can never kill my favorite characters. I've grown so attached to Luke, Bryn, Silena, and Derek and it saddens me greatly that their story is almost genuinely, truly over. On that note, the final book of the series, a novella, is going to be published soon. It's called 'UnTouchable' and you'll learn about some of the things Bryn did while she was 'dead'. I love you all so much, y'all are the best readers out there! I know most of y'all are Percy Jackson fans but I have a new sci-fi book that's being published that I think you might enjoy :) It's called 'Stargazer' so check it out :) and watch the video on it! It's the trailer I created because I got bored… Review you lovely people and I will see you for the final time in the final installment of the UnKnown Trilogy, 'UnTouchable'.**

**Love,**

**Wisegirl502**

**(P.S. I will admit I did get some enjoyment and satisfaction out of your reactions towards the cliffhangers and plot twists if you didn't know that by now… sorry…)**


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